Cole In The Grand Magic Games
by EvilCole
Summary: With Fairy Tail's reputation at stake, Master Mavis turns to an unexpected competitor, will he be able to make a difference? (Sequel to Reborn)
1. Chapter 1 : Prologue

Disclaimer :

1) I do not own Fairy Tail, nor do I own InFamous, both belong to their respective owners

2) This is a sequel to the series which starts with InFamous : The Lost Magic, followed by Reborn, I would strongly recommend you to read the two before you attempt to read this.

3) Again, this is just a fanfiction, don't take it too seriously, just sit back and enjoy

* * *

A year had passed since Zeref almost had the world under his grasp if it wasn't for the contribution of Reaper and Ursa, who managed to put an end to his plans. While everything had turned back to normal, Reaper was still in search of a way back home, while Ursa was hailed as a hero by her fellow guild members for what she had contributed. However, Ursa didn't find it necessary to let her guild members know the fact that, it was Reaper, who's contributions truly changed everything. She hadn't seen him since that day. Fairy Tail was still ranked the lowest in Magnolia nonetheless. Even with Ursa, the guild lacked the power-packed performances and contributions from the finest.

The year is X790, 7 years since the disappearance of Fairy Tail and Tenrou Island off the map by the hands of Acnologia. The few remaining guild members had struggled to keep Fairy Tail's reputation up, but failed as Fairy Tail ranked lowest among the other guilds of Magnolia. Master Macao had served as the guild's fourth master during that time. As it was early in the morning, he opened the doors of the guild hall and took a deep breath as he looked around. He then walked into it and sat near the bar, after a couple of minutes, Ursa walked in and walked towards the counter.

'Good morning!' she greeted as she passed by Master Macao.

'Good morning kid' he replied soon after which he took a deep breath and looked around. Ursa nodded and served him a glass of beer a couple of minutes later.

'You don't look so good' she said as she handed over the glass.

'I don't know, it's been 7 years now, and Tenrou Island is nowhere to be found' replied Macao as he took a sip. Ursa didn't reply and just kept looking at the wooden board of the bar table. Hours passed and more of the remaining guild members entered the guild hall.

As time passed, the endless cycle of looking at the empty job request board along with the lack of energy within the hall had followed through. Suddenly, someone had opened the door of the guild hall.

'I have exciting news my friends!' yelled out the man, who was revealed to be Ichiya from the Blue Pegasus guild.

'Tell us' replied Macao as he stood up. 'Well, according to our research' said Hibiki as he stepped in and began to use his archive magic to bring out a projection of a computer like hologram.

'We've been looking around for signatures of Ether-nano particles across the ocean, and guess what this leads to' he said as he pointed at the map. Everyone looked at it with surprise while Ursa looked carefully and spoke out.

'The ether-nano particles seem to be emitting at a very high rate over there, could it mean?' she said, soon after which everyone turned their attention towards her.

'What?!' she asked in a loud tone as she felt a bit embarrassed.

'Hmph. Cute' said Hibiki as he began to amplify it's frequency.

'The girl is right, we have finally found Tenrou Island' replied Ichiya, soon after which there was a loud cheer within the hall.

'Don't keep your hopes high yet, we still don't know if it's actually tenrou island over there, some of us need to go there and check the place out first' said Eve as he entered along with Ren.

'This is as far as we can help you, so better make this count' said Ren as he handed over a map given to him by Hibiki.

'We appreciate it' replied Macao as they were about to leave. As they were about to leave, Eve turned around and looked at Ursa, she looked at him with surprise, soon after which he winked at her. Ursa didn't reply and only gave an awkward smile, soon after which he left. She then gave a grumpy look after he left and immediately turned her attention towards the map.

Master Macao had sent a team to search for the members, while Ursa had stayed back because she felt the need to make sure no one robs the guild hall. After hours and hours of waiting patiently. Knocks on the guild's main door had caught their attention.

'Could it be?' she though as she walked towards the door to open it, when suddenly it slammed open . Ursa opened her eyes to see the Tenrou Team standing right in front of her.

'Guys?' she mumbled as tears began to roll down our cheeks.

'Hey.. Is this?' yelled out Natsu with his voice as loud as it could be.

'No way, I can't believe she's grown this much' said Lucy as she walked in towards her.

'Surprising what can happen within 7 years' said Erza.

'Guys.. It's really you' said Ursa with tears as she wiped them off her face, when suddenly she was hugged. Ursa opened her eyes to see Mira hugging her.

'Hey, we're here now' she said as she left her and looked at her.

'Mira, Erza, Natsu... All of you' she mumbled as she looked around.

'Welcome home' she said, soon after which she gave a smile.

'Alright! Now that you've mentioned 7 years, I'm starving!' yelled out Natsu soon after which Guildarts interrupted him.

'Hold your horses pyro, we just got here' he said as he sat down. Laxus just gave a dim look and left the hall soon after. Ursa then looked around and sprinted towards Master Makarov.

'Oh my, she's grown a lot' thought Master Makarov as she approached a lot.

'It's good to see you too Ursa' he said with a smile.

'Hey Ursa, how's it hanging?' asked Gray with a smile.

'Feeling a lot better now that you're here!' she replied soon after which Juvia stood right between them.

'How dare you talk to my beloved like that?'asked Juvia in a bold tone.

'Uh.. Juvia that's Ursa.. Remember.. The kid?' he said with his palm on his face. Juvia carefully looked at Ursa, who had her eyes wide open and then felt embarrassed.

'Oh my god! I'm so sorry! I didn't even recognize you!' she said as she kept her head down.

'It's alright, calm down' she replied as she looked around.

'Hey! Wendy!' she yelled as she looked at her standing all by herself along with Karla.

'No way, is that Ursa?' asked Karla.

'Yes she is, oh man, I can't believe I'm the youngest in the guild right now' replied Wendy soon after which Ursa stood right in front of her.

'Look, it's that weird kid' said Gajeel as he stood with Panther Lily.

'Wow, I can't believe we were out for 7 years, look at how much she's grown' he replied as he watched her. Ursa turned around and looked at those two, and gave a smile.

'Do you think she heard us?' asked Gajeel.

'Would be better if she didn't' replied lily.

With the Tenrou team back into commission, Fairy Tail was slowly rebuilding itself back to how it was before, however they cannot be re-ranked, not till they participate in the grand magic games tournament. A tournament in which all the other guilds participate to be named the number 1 guild in Fiore.

A few months had passed, the Key of the starry sky arc was over. Guildarts had left Fairy Tail and Laxus was named as a member of Fairy Tail once again. The members of the guild were seen rejoicing over the fact that they were still ranked last among other guilds. The idea of participation in the grand magic games had surfaced within and everyone seemed to be excited about it. Alternate groups had set themselves in order to train for the event. Natsu, Wendy, Lucy, Gray and Erza were the first ones to arrive post training and were ready to set out.

'Then it's settled, Natsu, Wendy, Lucy, Gray and Erza will be Team Fairy Tail' said Master Makarov.

'No way, I think it would be better if Laxus or Gajeel takes my place don't you think?' asked Wendy curiously.

'It has been decided child, the others haven't returned from training, so I suggest you all to leave for the registrations in Crocus, now then, no time to loose, 1 million Jewels are at stake here' ordered Makarov as he thought about the prize money.

'Alright, let's leave team' said Erza soon after which the 5 members leave the guild hall.

'Now that they've gone, it's time we arrange our second team for the tournament' said Makarov as he waited for the others to return from training. As the others had returned, Makarov had carefully looked at all of them and then shook his head.

'It has been decided' he said as he began to announce the second team. 'Laxus, Juvia, Gajeel, Ursa.. And..' he said before being interrupted by someone entering the hall.

'Before you announce the fifth member, may I present a volunteer? You can decide if he's fit for it or not' said Master Mavis who had just entered the hall.

'Master Mavis!? You..' said Makarov while the other members at the hall were shocked over what they were seeing. Master Mavis looked at the other members with a smile and then looked back at Makarov,

'So, do you want fairy tail to win or not?' she asked him.

'Alright, where is your volunteer?' asked Makarov curiousy as he looked around and couldn't find anyone.

'Give me an hour and he'll be here' she replied soon after which she disappeared.

'That.. Was strange' said Juvia, while the other members had their eyes wide open over what they saw.

Mavis had used a spell to transport herself into another dimension. As she opened her eyes into a world she hadn't seen before, she was amazed over what she saw.

'Wow, look at those vehicles!' she yelled out as she saw a car pass by her. She then looked at the sky to see an airplane fly by her.

'I haven't seen a dragon like that before!' she yelled as she flew and looked at it from a distance.

'What a strange world!' she said as she was amazed by things she hadn't seen before.

'Okay, now back to business...' she said as she looked around and searched. When all of the sudden, she sees a woman being robbed by a man in a street with no people.

'Somebody help!' she yelled as she fell down and couldn't chase the man.

'Oh my, I guess crime is something you'll see everywhere' said Mavis as she watched on top of a building, when, out of nowhere, a bolt of blue lightning had struck the man's feet. A man wearing a white top and a sling bag had then arrived and took the stolen purse off the thief's hands.

'Here you go Ma'am' he said as he handed over the purse back to the lady and then used his ice jump to get away. As he got on top of the rooftop, he used his communicator to call someone.

'Zeke, just saved another Damsel in distress, so you can add that in my personal record' he said with a smile as he sat down.

'Hello Cole, it's been a while' said a voice, forcing Cole to turn around, he was surprised to see Master Mavis standing right in front of him.

'Is it really you? Mavis?' he asked as he stood up.

'Yes silly!' she replied with a smile.

 _'This really brings me back, all that time I had spent at Fairy Tail, didn't forget a thing about it. Ahh, but first thing's first, why is she even here?'_

'What brings you here?' asked Cole curiously.

'Well, I just wanted to ask you for your help, Cole' she replied.

'You don't need to tell me a thing, I owe you guys for what you've given me, so count me in' he replied as he stood firm.

'I knew I could count on you Cole, we'll leave in half an hour, by that time my energy will be replenished, and will be enough for you to prepare yourself' she said with a smile.

'Alright, just gonna tell my friend Zeke I'll be gone for a while' said Cole as he used his ice jump to move across the rooftops. Mavis followed him on his way.

 _'I can't believe Master Mavis is here, I mean it's been a long time since I came back here. There must be trouble back there and she needs my help for a reason, I won't let her down'_

The fairy tail emblem on Cole's shoulder began to glow.


	2. Chapter 2 : Assemble! Team Fairy Tail B

Cole jumped across the rooftops around the city as he used his ice jump. Master Mavis kept following Cole till he reached the place where Zeke had set up a space to live.

'You live at the rooftops?' asked Mavis curiously.

'No, not really, this is just a place where we hang out and relax' replied Cole soon after which he turned his attention towards Zeke, who was busy watching TV.

'Zeke.. Zeke?' yelled Cole soon after which Zeke turned around while he was sipping a bottle of vodka.

'Ugh, yea? What's up brother?' asked Zeke soon after which Cole got surprised a bit.

'See the girl standing right beside me?' asked Cole curiously.

'I'm half drunk and can't see a thing, and you're already seeing things' replied Zeke with a smile as he looked around.

 _'What's going on? Am I seeing things?'_

'Don't worry, only someone who bears the Fairy Tail emblem can see me' replied Mavis as she pointed at Cole's shoulder.

'Oh, that makes perfect sense' replied Cole soon after which he walked towards Zeke.

'Zeke, listen, I'll be gone for I don't know how long, so don't worry about me alright?' he said as he put his hand on Zeke's shoulder. Zeke turned around and stood up. He shook Cole's hand and smiled as Cole turned around.

'Good luck brother' said Zeke as Cole left the building.

'Where should we go now?' asked Cole as he jumped across the rooftops while talking to Mavis.

'Somewhere safe! Other people shouldn't see you disappear or they'll freak out' she replied, to which Cole smiled.

'People actually freak out when they see me, rather than seeing me disappear you know' he said soon after which he landed on a rooftop and looked at her.

'That's really strange' she replied, soon after which she walked forward and stood still.

'Hold my hand' she said as she extended her arm towards him. Cole nodded and held her hand, soon after which a magic circle appeared beneath them. 'Don't freak out, this trip is going to be a bit bumpy' she said with a smile, soon after which a portal sucked in both of them. The two were falling down in an endless void. Cole opened his eyes and looked around to see Mavis looking straight down and holding his hand. She then turned around and gave a smile,

'We're here!' she said as a rift within the void opened up, to which the two got sucked out.

The two had a comfortable landing in front of the Fairy Tail guild hall.

 _'Is this the guild hall? No way, this place looks like it got deserted'_

'What happened here? This doesn't look like the guild hall I knew' said Cole as he looked around.

'Don't worry, I'll explain everything once we're done with something important' she replied.

'And what's that?' Cole asked as he looked around, being a bit surprised.

'Wait here, and when I give the signal, come inside' she said as she smiled at him and went inside the guild hall.

 _'This is so strange, I remember the guild hall being better than what I'm seeing here. Something bad must have happened here, I hope everyone is alright. Even though Master Mavis seems to be surprised about all this, I'm still a bit worried'_

'It's been more than an hour and she hasn't told us who the volunteer is' said Gajeel who was a bit impatient about what was going on.

'All I'm saying is we go through with our plans and get on with it, or else we'll be late for the party!' he added with a slightly louder tone.

'Hmm, maybe you're right, but, I can't disagree on what our Master Mavis has to say, the consequences will be severe if we don't listen to her' replied Master Makarov.

'Oh come on, we've been waiting here for how long? If she wanted this guy to participate so badly she would have been here with him right now!' said Laxus, who grew a bit impatient.

'Guys, let's just wait a bit more, I'm sure she'll be on her way at any moment' said Ursa, soon after which everyone took a deep breath. Suddenly, the doors of the guild hall opened on their own and Master Mavis stepped in.

'Welcome back Master Mavis!' said Mira, soon after which she smiled and turned around, signaling Cole to walk towards her.

'Alright, I know you have set a team of your own, but I would like to see an inclusion' she said soon after which Master Makarov interrupted.

'But.. Where's the volunteer?' he asked curiously. Master Mavis smiled and moved away, soon after which Cole stepped in.

Everyone at the guild hall were stunned over what they saw. Cole, standing right in front of them, alive and well.

'Hey, I know this guy..' said Laxus as he looked at him carefully.

'Cole!?' exclaimed Master Makarov.

'He's alive..' mumbled Mira as she stared at him.

'C..Cole? Is that really you?' said Macao as he looked at him in awe.

 _'I can tell by the looks on these guy's faces that they missed me, heck I don't blame them, I missed them too'_

Cole looked around and then raised his hand as his way of greeting everyone at the guild.

 _'Hey, where's Natsu and.. Wendy?'_

Cole's emotions changed all of the sudden, as he felt the absence of the other members. He then turned towards his right to see a girl with silver hair standing right in front of him.

'Hey, what's up?' asked Cole as he looked at her. Ursa didn't respond, she had tears in her eyes as she kept staring at him for a while. Cole looked at her for a while till an image of Ursa when she was a small kid flashed right in front of him.

'Ursa?' mumbled Cole as he looked at her, soon after which she hugged him.

 _'Wow, I mean, just look at her, she's grown quite a bit'_

As she let go of him, she wiped her tears and gave a smile.

'It's good to see you again' said Cole with a smile.

'I really can't believe you're here, Cole' replied Ursa, soon after which, Cole turned his attention towards Master Mavis, who was seemingly excited about something he didn't know.

'So Makarov, what do you think?' asked Master Mavis, soon after which Laxus interrupted them.

'I'd hate to break it to you guys, but don't you think having 3 lightning users in one team is kind of a risk? I mean come on, Me, Ursa and now Cole?' asked Laxus, soon after which Makarov interrupted.

'I was planning on making Mira the fifth member of the team, but as luck has it, we have Cole by our side. Laxus, Cole isn't just skilled with lightning magic, he has mastered ice magic along with his expertise in battle tactics' replied Makarov in a justified tone.

'But, can't we just keep Mira instead of Ursa, I mean why leave Mira out of this, and Ursa is just a rookie' added Gajeel as he joined in.

'As much as I want Fairy Tail to win this competition, I want it to be a learning experience for you wizards as well. Ursa is a budding wizard who has a bright future ahead of herself, I'm giving her a chance to represent Fairy Tail not just because of this, she has earned it from the hard work she has done' he added.

'I won't let you down Master' said Ursa as she gave a fistpump.

 _'Woah, hold on, Ursa can use lightning magic? Is this for real?'_

'Alright, I believe we're done here, see you at the games Cole!' said Master Mavis soon after which she disappeared.

 _'Games?'_

'It's good to see you again Cole' said Master Makarov soon after which Cole shook his hand.

'The pleasure is all mine' replied Cole, soon after which he turned his attention to Juvia, who was standing right in front of him.

'You must be the one named Cole McGrath, My dear Gray told me all about you and how you saved this town from someone named Reaper' she said, soon after which Cole got a flashback of him and his fight with Reaper.

 _'Reaper... (Cole flashes back to his old fight against Reaper) Damn, a long time has passed since then'_

'Yeah, It's a pretty long story..' replied Cole.

'You don't need to go through the details, we all know what happened that day, me and Gajeel were gone for a mission which lasted over a month, and by the time we arrived, you were already gone' she replied.

'Gajeel..' he said as he looked around.

'She's talking about me pal' said Gajeel with a grumpy voice.

'Yeah, I heard about you, Flame Breath couldn't stop talking about you when I arrived here' he added as he ate a bunch of bolts. Cole then turned his attention towards Panther Lily and was surprised for a moment.

'So...you're an exceed too?' he asked.

'That's right, I heard about your battle with your alter ego, it's nice to be meeting a warrior like you Cole' Lily replied.

'Ofcourse there would be more talking cats'

'Alright, now that we've assembled team 2, let's head out for the registrations shall we?' said Makarov, soon after which everyone cheered. While Fairy Tail's first team had already arrived, Fairy Tail's second team was still on it's way to the city of Crocus, where the grand magic games were going to be held. At the train station, as the members waited, Cole was looking around, seeing people pass by, and couldn't help but give a smile. 'Hey, where exactly are we going?' asked Cole.

'Let me see if I remember the place' he added soon after which Laxus replied.

'We're going to the city of Crocus, the grand magic games will be held over there'.

 _'Oh yeah, The games they keep talking about, I'm not exactly sure what's going on, but these guys don't look tensed at all, I don't know what's going on in their heads'._

'I remember the place, it was there I got my job as the Viceroy's bodyguard' replied Cole.

'Is that so?' asked Laxus, soon after which Cole further asked.

'Hey, I don't know what exactly is going on, but mind telling me where Natsu and the others are?' asked Cole curiously.

'Oh, for crying out loud, somebody please explain him what the games are about' yelled out Laxus as he felt a bit irritated over his questions. Ursa nodded and stood up from her seat to sit beside Cole. She began to explain the tournament, and why Fairy Tail were taking part in it.

 _'So that's why the Guild hall is deserted'_

'But, what about Natsu and Erza?' asked Cole curiously.

'They're Fairy Tail's first team, we are the second team to enter' she replied.

'Oh, so a guild can send two teams in the preliminary round huh? Sounds interesting' said Cole.

'Indeed, I'm looking forward to it' said Ursa with a smile.

The train had arrived, after the team sat down, the train set off towards it's destination. The city of Crocus, known for it's beautiful flowers and architecture. After a long journey, the team had quickly proceeded towards the hotel where everyone agreed not to reveal themselves till the day of the preliminary round. While Team one had been roaming around the city during the festival, team 2 had kept a low profile. While being in their hotel room, Master Makarov along with Mira had come to announce that their names had been registered and they were told to assemble at their given dorms at 12 AM sharp.

'Good luck Gajeel' said Lily as he stood beside Mira.

'We're counting on all of you, perform your best, and win this, for Fairy Tail!' exclaimed Makarov, 6 hours before midnight.

'Alright!' yelled the others, after which the other members who were there to wish the team, had left, leaving the members on their own.

'So we have 6 hours before an important announcement, should be interesting' said Laxus.

'Right, and I think it would be best if we stay together and don't lose track of one another' said Juvia.

'Meh, we're not going anywhere anyways, so relax' added Gajeel.

'What if someone wants to go to the bathroom at 11:59?' asked Cole curiously, with a faint smile on his face.

'Ugh, and make sure you're all ready as well' added Laxus after Cole's remark.

 _'I really thought something bad had happened here, but it turns out there's a lot I don't know, the tournament seems interesting, and there's a reason Mavis put her faith in me'_

Cole holds his right shoulder _'I won't let them down, if I'm gonna enter this tournament, I better not underestimate anyone, and give everything I got!'_ Cole's body got surrounded with blue lightning as he kept thinking. Laxus looked at him and gave a smile, while the others gave a determined look.

'Let's take care of this' mumbled Cole as he looked out of the window to see the stadium where the games will be held.


	3. Chapter 3 : The Sky Labyrinth!

Hours before the major announcement, Fairy Tail's Team A was wandering around the entire city, while Team B had agreed not to reveal themselves to anyone till the main event. Cole, along with his team members had been patiently waiting at their room. As Cole kept staring at the clock, he felt a bit impatient about having to wait for so long, while the others did nothing but sit still.

'So, have you guys been a part of the tournament before?' asked Cole, in an attempt to break the silence.

'A couple of times, but it's been really disappointing, because we always ended up last' replied Ursa.

'Oh, but, that does mean there are going to be strong and powerful wizards over there' replied Cole.

'Yeah, and the guild Sabertooth, always turns out to be the champion each year' she added.

'What's so special about them anyways?' asked Laxus as he interrupted.

'They have been a force to be reckoned with, the twin dragons in their team' she added.

'Twin dragons? You mean dragon slayers, right?' asked Gajeel.

'Yeah, and not only them, they have been a strong 5 man team throughout the years, however, rumors about a powerful wizard joining the guild a year ago had been spreading like wildfire' she further added.

'A powerful wizard huh, this time however, it's going to be different' replied Cole, who felt a bit confident over himself.

'Let's just get over with the preliminary round first, speaking of which, just five minutes are left' said Laxus as he looked at the clock.

'Alright, we better get ready' said Juvia as she stood at the balcony. The others stood beside her, and waited patiently, till the last minute.

*Alright, there's gonna be a big announcement now, I don't know what's gonna happen, but I believe it has something to do with the preliminary rounds. Judging by the looks of these guys, I know it's gonna be a piece of cake!*

As the clock struck 12, the bells of Crocus's clock tower began ringing, signaling the time for the all important announcement. Suddenly, a large labyrinth is made out of nowhere in the sky.

*What the hell? Is that a giant maze? And how on Earth is that thing even floating?*

'Don't be fooled by it's size' said Laxus as he carefully looked at it, while Juvia and Ursa kept looking around and saw members of other guilds standing out. A passage was made between each balconies to the labyrinth, soon after which a hologram of a giant pumpkin head appeared out of nowhere.

'Hello everyone! As you all know, I am the face of this year's Grand Magic Games! Mato!' he yelled out as he raised his arms in the end. Cole then noticed other guild members using the pathway, advancing towards the labyrinth.

'Hey, no time to waste, let's get going!' he yelled out soon after which Laxus and Juvia nodded, while Gajeel and Ursa followed, with Cole leading them from the front.

'The rules are pretty simple, the first 8 teams to reach the entrance of the arena will be selected. But! All 5 members should be present at the same time, or else the teams will be disqualified!' said Mato, after which Cole looked a bit stressed.

 _*All five members, better make sure we stick together no matter what happens*._

'Also, team can use whatever means necessary to get themselves into this round, and by that I mean, Death won't end the competition' added Mato, stressing his last point, soon after which his hologram disappeared. After he finished his statement, a barrage of fireballs targeted at the team appeared out of nowhere. The team kept dodging the attacks, till the were near the labyrinth.

'Watch out!' yelled Cole as he used his frost shield and jumped towards Gajeel to protect him, after which he fell off the path.

'I got you!' yelled Juvia as she used her water catch and hold onto Cole's legs. Cole started to feel a burning sensation as she held onto him. She tossed him up quickly and Cole used his static thrusters to land back at the path.

'We almost lost you there, don't do that again!' yelled out Laxus.

'Don't worry, I was gonna use my lightning tether to get up, but I guess that worked well too, thank's Juvia' replied Cole.

'Well, thanks anyways' said Gajeel, soon after which they kept running till they reached the labyrinth.

*It's a giant puzzle, damn, no wonder why this contest is a big deal* Cole kept looking around, while Laxus and Juvia kept an eye out for other members.

'So where do you think we should go?' asked Cole as he looked at different paths around the giant maze.

'I don't know, you're supposed to be the smart guy over here' replied Gajeel. Cole looked around, soon after which Ursa interrupted.

'The announcer mentioned about reaching the arena, it was barely visible with this sky labyrinth, so maybe we should head towards the direction where it was.' she said, soon after which Gajeel interrupted her.

'But where the heck is it? I didn't even pay attention to where it was before the whole maze showed up' he replied.

'Maybe I know where it is' said Cole as he kept his hand on the ground and closed his eyes.

'And what might that be?' asked Laxus curiously.

'This whole thing is just temporary, I mean, it's made through magic, so energy is flowing through all this' he said as he stood up.

'How's that gonna help us find the way to the arena?' asked Gajeel after he felt a bit impatient.

'This whole maze is just a big distraction, there's no way through those twists and turns, it had been designed for people to get lost' Cole added as he carefully looked at two paths from where he stood.

'So you're saying this whole Maze is just a distraction' asked Juvia.

'Yeah, and I have a feeling we're not the first ones to know about it' said Cole as he noticed a bunch of people sneaking behind him. He quickly turned around and swung his amp right at the intruder, soon after which Laxus and Juvia were alerted. As the team were fighting off the other guilds, the labyrinth started shaking vigorously.

'Everyone! Hold on to something!' yelled Cole As he used his lightning tether to hatch himself onto a nearby wall. He watched as other contestants fell of the giant maze.

*Damn! That shuts off most of the competition, we're still not done though*.

Cole watched as Gajeel was about to fall off, Juvia attempted to rescue him, however she was unable to catch him.

'Gajeel!' yelled Cole, soon after which Ursa caugh Gajeel with chains made out of lightning.

'I can't... Hold on.. Much longer!' said Ursa as she held on tight, soon after which Laxus held her and pulled the chains, rescuing Gajeel.

'Huh, second time I'm rescued today' said Gajeel with a tone of disappointment.

'Try to keep up' replied Laxus, soon after which he turned his attention to Cole, who was still looking around for a way.

'So tough guy, found a way yet?' asked Laxus as he approached him.

'Still figuring out a bit of things' replied Cole as he sat down and placed his palm on the ground for a while.

'What is he doing?' asked Juvia as she looked at him.

'He's figuring out what would happen if we choose one of these paths, transmitting electricity through them, if he feels a feedback from one of the paths, that means we're gonna go in circles if we go through that one, think of it as a loop' replied Laxus.

'Oh, shouldn't this take time?' asked Gajeel. 'How fast do you think lightning travels?' asked Laxus, soon after which Cole stood up.

'I got it, just need to follow this path, I'm receiving nothing from the other side' replied Cole as he walked.

'You heard the man, let's go' yelled Laxus soon after which the team started sprinting. As they kept following the path which Cole had deciphered in his mind, they were drawn into the inner layer of the Sky Labyrinth.

'Woah, it's like a whole different place here' said Ursa as she looked around and were inside a room which, surprisingly, looked as if the five were in the middle of the ocean.

'What the hell? An ocean inside this thing?' said Cole as he bent down and touched the water.

'This is some weird magic' replied Gajeel, soon after which Ursa pointed at a door not too far from where they stood.

'There, that must be the way to the arena' she said, soon after which Gajeel interrupted.

'How the hell are we supposed to even reach that, with all this water?' he said. Cole grinned and slammed his fist onto the ground, creating a large path of ice for them to tread on. 'Nice work' replied Laxus as he stepped on the ice to make sure it's hard enough. 'After you..' said Cole, allowing others to go before him.

'I could have made a bubble for us to float on, but this can work too' said Juvia as she left, to which Cole grinned and followed.

'Alright, the ice is good enough, let's keep going!' exclaimed Laxus, soon after which the others continued sprinting. As they reached the end of the path made by Cole, the door to the arena was right in front of them.

'Great show everybody!' yelled out Maco as he appeared in front of them.

'It's that pumpkin head again!' said Cole as he kept his hand on his mask.

'No touching!' yelled Mato as he slapped Cole's hand and looked at him with anger.

'Was just checking if you were really a pumpkin or not, I've been seeing strange things, so' said Cole as he scratched his head.

'Nevermind the rude intrusion by your team mate here, but congratulations! You've made it to the main event!' exclaimed Mato, soon after which he threw a couple of ribbons and glitter at the team. 'So, are we the first ones here?' asked Cole curiously.

'Well, it's a surprise Fairy Tail made it this far, and as for the answer of your question, the answer is no! You'll know the complete roster of the tournament during it's inauguration tomorrow!' replied Mato.

'So you're saying we're second?' asked Laxus as he folded his arms.

'Yep, that's right!' replied Mato, soon after which the team stepped into the door. The team was directed to their rooms, before the main event.

'Damn it, all that hard work and we end up being second' said Gajeel as he sat on a chair.

'Look on the bright side, we're into the main rounds aren't we?' replied Juvia as she removed her cap and lied on her bed.

'Something's definitely not right' added Cole with a tone of concern.

'What do you mean?' asked Ursa as she sat down.

'I don't know, maybe it's the labyrinth that messed up my head' he replied.

'You better rest, it's a big day tomorrow, did a pretty good job out there' said Laxus as he kept his hand on Cole's shoulder.

'All of us did a pretty good job' replied Cole, putting a smile on everyone's faces.

'So, who do you think came first? Our other team?' asked Cole curiously. Laxus looked at him and couldn't help but laugh on his remark. Gajeel gave a smile, while Ursa and Juvia didn't respond much.

'I know Erza's smart but not that smart' said Laxus as he sat down on his bed.

'Don't underestimate Gray' replied Juvia with a bold tone.

'With flame breath, they probably would have fallen off or something' replied Gajeel soon after which he started laughing.

'I probably think it's Sabertooth, who else could it be?' interrupted Ursa.

'Probably..' replied Cole soon after which he walked towards his bed.

'Alright, they might have beaten us in this round, but that doesn't mean it'll stay that way, it's time we show what we can do' said Cole, to which, others gave a nod.

While the other members fell asleep, Cole had thoughts pouring into his mind which kept him awake.

 _*While I was scanning for a path, I felt something which interrupted my transmission, I'm not so sure if it was because of the Labyrinth or something, maybe it was Natsu and the others, gah, I'll never know*._

Cole gets up from his bed and see's the window of his room.

'The city, it's pretty beautiful' mumbled Cole as he kept staring at it.

'Something keeping you awake?' asked Ursa, who stood behind him, surprising Cole for a moment.

'Ahh.. No, I just wanted to have a look of the view' replied Cole.

'I know, it's beautiful isn't it?' said Ursa with a smile. Cole just looked outside where all the decorations for the festival illuminated the entire town.

'Yeah..' replied Cole, soon after which he looked at Ursa.

'Hey, so when did you practice using lightning magic?' asked Cole.

'It's a long story..' she replied, soon after which she lied on her bed.

'Alright, see you tomorrow' she added with a smile as she closed her eyes and covered herself with a blanket.

'Sure thing' replied Cole as went and lied on his bed.

'Well what do you know, only 3 hours till the main event, better get a quick nap' mumbled Cole as he closed his eyes.

Outside the stadium, the Labyrinth had disappeared and the final eight contestants had been selected for the main event. Announcements were being made on the timing of the inauguration ceremony.

'So, do you think they made it?' asked Mira as she was with Master Makarov and Lissana, along with Happy, Karla and Lily.

'I have full faith on them, if we're lucky, both of our teams would have crossed the line' replied Master Makarov.

'Both teams?' questioned both Karla and Happy.

'You two better keep your mouth shut about this till the inauguration!' said Master Makarov in a loud tone.

'Lily, make sure they don't tell the others about this' ordered Mira. 'Will do' said Lily, soon after which he looked at Karla and Happy.

'Master Mavis, I know your wisdom has no bounds, and I hope your champion exceeds all expectations we have from him' though Master Makarov as an image of Cole with Fairy Tail's emblem popped up in his head.


	4. Chapter 4 : The Grand Inauguration

Hours before the inauguration of the Grand Magic Games. Fairy Tail's Team B had gotten up after a quick rest since the completion of the preliminary round.

'Alright everyone, we go out there and send them a message, Fairy Tail's back to be number one!' said Ursa with a determined look in her eyes. Cole grinned as he looked at her, and the rest of his team, soon after which he was surprised over the blue uniforms everyone was about to wear.

'We'll be wearing uniforms huh? How come I never got one?' he asked curiously.

'The old man didn't give you one? Ah.. Great' replied Laxus with a tone of disappointment.

'Don't worry Cole, I made something for you, and I'm glad I brought it here' replied Ursa soon after which she took out a dark blue long coat with the fairy tail emblem embedded on it's back.

'That will do, thanks Ursa' replied Cole as he took the coat from her and wore it.

'Well what do you know, it's a perfect fit!' said Cole as he wore it and looked at it.

'I'm glad you liked it!' said Ursa with a smile.

'Contestants! The time for inauguration is about to begin! Please step towards the assembly area!' said the announcer Mato through a loudspeaker.

'Alright guys, it's time for the main event' said Cole as he opened the door.

'Try not to catch a lot of attention Cole, if you know what I mean' said Laxus as he passed by him.

'Don't worry, I don't plan on cutting myself loose, unless I'm provoked' replied Cole as he lifted his hand and charged his fist.

'That's the spirit' said Laxus soon after which the team left the room.

'Ladies and Gentlemen! Boys and girls of all ages! Hello and welcome to this years Grand Magic Games! I'm your host Chapati Lola and along side me is the incredible Mr. Yajima and we are proud to be serving you guests here as the commentators of this event!'. Said Lola, who was sitting at a room with the full view of the stadium along with Yajima.

'Hello everyone, it is interesting to watch wizards from different guilds come together and show off their skills to the rest of the world, but that's not why we're here, the main reason for this gathering is to decide who will win the title of number 1 guild of Fiore' said Yajima, after which a large cheer from the crowd followed.

'Now then, thank you for your patience folks, the time to announce the winners of the preliminary rounds has come!' said the announcer a short while after. A Gate had opened within the arena after which the crowd cheered.

'The team which holds eighth place in this year's competition is a surprise entry, but it may be the year for them, it's Fairy Tail!' exclaimed the announcer, after which the crowd became silent.

'Yeaaahh! Bring it on!' yelled out Natsu as he yelled at the crowd with his arms up.

'Why aren't they cheering?' asked Wendy as she looked a bit nervous.

'Look, over there' said Lucy as she pointed at the guild members who were watching from the crowd.

'Go Fairy Tail!' yelled Master Makarov as he stood up and cheered for them.

'You can do it guys!' added Lissana along with Mira.

'It's obvious we aren't the crowd favorites anymore' said Erza.

'Well that's a total let down' replied Gray. Seconds later, the crowd started booing at them. 'Hey what gives? They're booing at us!' yelled Natsu as he covered his fist with flames.

'Let it all sink in, we'll show them what we can do during the games' replied Gray.

'It looks like Fairy Tail doesn't have much support from the crowd, but let's not jump to conclusions folks, they've managed to make it this far, this might as well be a year full of surprises!' added the announcer as he was about to reveal the other contestants.

'Alright, taking 7th place in this competition is Quatro Cerberus!' said the announcer after which the guild members entered, chanting 'Wild!' all together followed by a loud cheer within the crowd. Natsu was a bit surprised but kept his cool and watched.

'The next team, taking 6th place is Mermaid Heel!' added the announcer after which five girls entered into the arena.

'Wow, it's like a female only guild huh?' asked Lucy.

'That's pretty dumb' replied Natsu.

'You would be wise to show some respect' replied Erza in a bold tone.

'5th place is taken by Team Blue Pegasus!' said the announcer a short while after which the team had entered with the Trimens along with their master Ichiya and an unknown man in a bunny suit. As the trimens had entered, a large cheer had erupted from the crowd.

'Look at those fangirls' said Gray as he looked at the girls in the crowd cheering loud for them.

'4th place is taken by Team Lamia Scale!' said the announcer, after which their team had entered the arena.

'So Lyon's a part of this too' said Gray as he looked at him.

'It's no surprise they won't be a part of all this without Jura' said Master Makarov as he looked at him.

'One of the ten wizard saints huh' added Lissana.

'Even with Me and Erza , I still doubt we'd be able to take him down' said Mira.

'Look on the bright side, our team must be at the top 3' said Lissana soon after.

'So who're the members of our second team?' asked Happy as he watched along with Lily and Karla.

'It's a top secret, so keep your eyes wide open' replied Lily.

'I just hope they're better than what's about to come' added Karla.

'As for our 3rd spot, it's going to be a debut for this guild, let's hear it for Raventail!' yelled out the announcer, soon after which their members entered the arena.

'What? No way? Ivan?!' exclaimed Makarov as he looked around and saw his son, who betrayed his guild, sitting close to him and posing as Raventail's guild master.

'It's been a while Makarov' said Ivan with a smile.

'Alright, we're up next' said Laxus as he got a briefing from a helper.

'Well folks, we've been seeing a lot of strange things this year, but nothing can compare it to this, it looks like our second spot has been taken by Team Fairy Tail B!' exclaimed the announcer, soon after which 4 members walked out.

'What? Team B? Is that even possible?' yelled out Natsu in confusion.

'This is weird, to think both teams of Fairy Tail would make it this far' said Kagura as she looked at the members walking out.

'Hey, there's only four of them, who's the fifth member?' asked Wendy as she looked at them walking in. Suddenly, a man walked right in seconds later, surprising almost everyone who watched.

'Told you they'll make it' said Master Mavis as she suddenly appeared near the guild members watching the games.

'Is that who I think he is?' said Gray as he looked carefully.

'No way, How is that even possible?' said Erza.

'I don't know about you guys but he looks pretty real to me' replied Lucy. Cole walked in and waved his hands around the crowd and gave a smile.

'It's really him..' said Natsu as his eyes were wide open. Cole then looked around and saw Natsu and his team staring right at him.

'Hey everyone..' said Cole soon after which he looked at Wendy.

 _'What.. Ursa's all grown up and she hasn't changed a bit, what the hell happened here?'_

'Cole? Is it really you?' mumbled Wendy as tears began to roll down her eyes.

'Relax Wendy, we'll meet up with him soon, stay strong for now' said Erza as she kept her hand on Wendy's shoulder. Wendy looked up to see tears falling off of Erza's eyes. Wendy nodded and wiped off her tears as she watched the team enter.

'Wooaahh no way! Cole's in the team?!' exclaimed Happy.

'I was sure it's going to be something extra ordinary but this is beyond my wildest imaginations' replied Karla.

'I still don't get it, we have a second team? And Cole's a member? More importantly, he's alive?' asked Gray, soon after which he was briefed by Mato, who's large hologram appeared at the middle of the stadium.

'We allowed guilds to send multiple teams during the prelims to spice up the competition, honestly even we didn't expect this to happen, but let's hope these two don't hold back against each other' he said soon after which he disappeared.

'Alright folks, the moment you've all been waiting for, it's time to reveal the Team which has sealed the number one spot in the preliminary round! You've guessed that right, it's team Sabertooth!' he yelled out loud, soon after which the crowd cheered as loud as they could. 5 members of their guild entered into the arena seconds later.

'You won't be surprised by this name, the twin dragons have been outstanding throughout the history of the competition, and it's no surprise they're first, but wait! This year they have a new 5 man team!' added the announcer as the members revealed themselves.

'What the hell?' thought Laxus as he looked carefully. Ursa stared at them with their eyes wide open. Mira couldn't believe what she was seeing and looked carefully.

'No way, it can't be him..' she mumbled. Erza and Natsu were completely stunned over what they saw. Cole looked carefully and was shocked completely.

 _'What the hell is he doing here?'_

Cole grunted as he kept looking at him.

'Yu..ki..no' mumbled Ursa as tears began to fall off her eyes. Cole couldn't handle his anger and charged his body.

'What the hell are you doing here Reaper?' he yelled out loud, catching everyone's attention, causing a silence within the stadium.

'You would be wise to show him respect' said Rogue as he interrupted him.

'It's cool Rogue, let me handle this' said Reaper as he kept his hand on Rogue's shoulder.

'Uh oh folks, it looks like Cole McGrath and Reaper have some rivalries between one another' said the announcer. Laxus kept his hand on Cole's shoulder, in order to calm him down.

'Take it easy, don't want to get disqualified now' he said, soon after which Cole powered himself down and stared at him.

'Oh, I didn't know he would be a part of all this, this is going to be interesting' mumbled Reaper as he grinned and walked back.

'Reaper is back huh? Now taking down Sabertooth will be even more satisfying' said Natsu as he tightened his fist and covered it in flames.

'I don't believe it.. It's really him.. Reaper (Kagura flashes back to her fight with Reaper a year ago and Jen's death)

'So that's Reaper, the one who attacked out guild 7 years ago' said Gajeel as he looked at him carefully.

'He doesn't look so tough' he added seconds later.

'Ursa.. What's wrong?' asked Cole as he turned his attention towards her and saw her crying.

'Yu..kino, Reaper..' she replied as she got a hold of herself.

'It's alright, once we're done with this tournament, we'll deal with him' replied Cole, which lit up her eyes.

'No.. I mean..' said Ursa, to which Cole didn't reply and looked around. Ursa then looked at Reaper, who was looking around the crowd, and then suddenly turned his attention towards her. He gave her a thumbs up and then shifted his attention towards Mato, who's hologram had appeared at the center of the stadium.

'I don't know what's going on, both Cole and Reaper are back? Reaper is in Sabertooth now? This competition just became a lot more bigger than being the number 1 guild in Fiore' said Erza who was confused over the turn of events that had taken place.

'We shouldn't back off now, Reaper or not, we took him down before and we're gonna do it again, this time it's going to be a lot more personal' replied Natsu in a bold tone. Wendy wiped her tears and gave a determined look, soon after which she nodded to what Natsu said.

'Hey! Even though you're one of us, we're not in the same team, so don't expect us to hold back!' yelled Natsu as he pointed at Team B.

'We're not gonna hold back either Flame Breath, besides, always wanted to humiliate you in front of a large crowd' replied Gajeel with a smile.

'What a bunch of amateurs' said Sting as he looked at them.

'This competition is just a waste of time, they don't have the same caliber they used to 7 years ago' added Rogue.

'Don't count out your opponents yet, they've managed to make it this far, do deserve a bit of respect' interrupted Reaper, which surprised them a bit.

'Now that the inauguration is over, it's time for the first event of the day!' exclaimed Mato.

'This should be interesting..' said Reaper with a smile on his face.

 _'I don't know what the hell is he doing here, I couldn't care less about what he has with that guild, but all I know is I gotta stop him before he hurts someone. He's a threat to each and everyone around here and no one realizes that'_

Cole looks around and sees Master Mavis looking right at him.

 _'I can't let her down, I'm gonna win this, for Fairy Tail!'_


	5. Chapter 5 : Hidden!

'Alright folks, now that the contestants have been announced, let's have a look at the points table shall we?' said the announcer, soon after which a large hologram with the team's names along with their points was displayed.

'Team Sabertooth stands at first place, bagging 10 points, followed by Team Fairy Tail B at second place with 8 points, followed by Raventail with 6 points. Lamia Scale and Blue Pegasus bag 4 and 2 points respectively. Team Quatro Cerberus at 7th place with 1 point while Team Fairy Tail A is left at 8th place with 0 points!' he said as everyone had their eyes over the giant screen.

'So what if we're last, we still have a long way to go from here!' exclaimed Natsu in a bold tone.

'You're right, we might be looked over right now, but we'll show them what we got' replied Erza.

'I knew it was a good idea to send in another team' said Master Makarov as he compared Team A with Team B.

'Our plan worked alright, but I still don't understand, what's Raventail doing here?' asked Mira.

'Ivan's treachery knows no bounds, We have to keep an eye on him at all costs' replied Master Makarov, soon after which he looked at Master Mavis, who was staring down at someone.

'Is something bothering you Master Mavis?' asked Mira curiously.

'It's nothing, I was looking at how good our team is' she replied with a smile.

'Ladies and Gentlemen, boys and girls, it's time for the first event of the Grand Magic games' exclaimed the announcer with a tone of excitement. Seconds later, a giant screen popped up in mid air, with the word

'Hidden' written on it.

'Hidden?' mumbled Cole as he looked at it carefully.

'It's supposed to be a phrase that gives us a clue to what the game will be about, from here on we must send in one of our team to represent us, after which the rules of the game will be revealed' replied Ursa.

'I totally got this' said Gray as he stepped in for his team.

'Gray Fullbuster from Team Fairy Tail A' said the announcer.

'If Gray is going to be a part of this, then so am I' exclaimed Juvia.

'Woah woah, hold on, no need to get excited over your love interest' replied Cole as he began to think.

'The game says hidden, so we probably have to pick someone who's good in hiding and stealth' replied Cole.

'Meh, I don't do that kind of stuff, I'd let Juvia go in' replied Gajeel.

'Yeah, not unless you'd wanna go in' interrupted Laxus.

 _'I wasn't the fastest one around, not till I got that frost dash from the blast core I got, it'd be pretty handy, but, since they're confident, I think Juvia should go in'_

'Alright, you're up Juvia' said Cole as he patted her shoulder.

'You can count on me' she replied soon after which her name was announced.

'This looks like a job for me' said Eve.

'Don't get caught up' replied Hibiki.

'Go! Eve! And don't let us down!' said Ichiya, soon after which the announcer said his name.

'Lyon Vastia from Team Lamia Scale and Beth Vanderwood from Mermaid Heel!' said the announcer as he denounced the participants from their respective guilds. 'It looks like I'll be the one for this kind of event' said Rufus as he stepped out from his team.

'Well then, what do you think Reaper?' asked Sting curiously.

'There's no point in thinking about it, there won't be any competition as always' replied Rogue.

'I just wanted to know if he wanted to be the first to have some fun' added Rufus with a smile.

'Nah, go ahead, I'll see what you can do' replied Reaper as he patter his shoulder.

'Rufus will be representing Team Sabertooth, while Nullpudding will represent Team Raventail, along with Jager representing Team Quatro Cerberus!' said the announcer as the final contestants were named for the event. The other team members stepped out to the pavilion, while the contestants waited in the main arena.

As the contestants waited, a city was formed right in front of them out of nowhere, soon after which clones of the contestants crowded the entire city.

 _'Woah, it's as if they're real'_

Cole kept looking carefully as the entire city got filled with clones of the contestants. 'The rules of Hidden are simple, you need to strike the real one out of those fakes, once you're successful, you receive one point, while the person you struck loses a point. The contestant with the most points after 30 minutes will be declared the winner! However, after a contestant is attack, 10 seconds prior to it, the contestant will be re spawned in another location' said Mato as he denounced the rules of the game.

'Alright, so it's a lot more than just staying hidden, if you don't attack you'll lose a chance of scoring points, I can sense the energy of people around me, but I'm not sure if I'd be able to tell the difference between a clone and a real person, these clones are made out of energy though. I don't know how Juvia's gonna play through this' mumbled Cole as he looked carefully.

'You sure talk to yourself a lot' said Gajeel as he looked at him.

'Yeah.. This competition's getting me pumped up' replied Cole as he looked at Reaper, who was folding his arms and watching along with the rest of his guild members.

'You're thinking about him too huh?' said Laxus as he came near him.

'Can't say I'm not, I thought I ended him for good, and here he is, standing right there, with those Sabertooth guys' replied Cole as he kept looking at him.

'I remember fighting that guy before, sure gave me a tough fight' replied Laxus.

'I still don't understand, what does he have to do with Sabertooth? Do they even know who they're dealing with?' said Cole as he looked away.

'You sound like you know that guy a lot more personally' said Laxus, who was a bit surprised.

'It's a long story, but I'll tell you this, he's a shadow of my past' said Cole as he sat down and looked at the screens, through which the games were visible to everyone.

The games had begun, Gray and Juvia walked carefully across the streets as the clones were still and didn't move.

'Oh my, there are so many Grays over here, surely I can get my hands over one!' exclaimed Juvia as she looked around and then unexpectedly hugged a clone of Gray.

'Uh oh..' she said, as she was warped away to a respawn point.

'That's a -1 for Team Fairy Tail B' said the announcer.

'Great..' said Gajeel as he looked a bit disappointed. Cole couldn't resist but gave a grin as he looked at her reaction as she was warped away.

'Come on Juvia, stay focused'

Meanwhile, Gray runs into Raven Tail Mage Nullpudding and attacks him with Ice-Make: Ice Hammer. However, the Nullpudding he attacked is actually a clone being used as a decoy by the real one hiding behind it, resulting in Gray losing a point and being transported into another part of the city.

'So the guy just used his clone as a decoy, that's pretty clever'

'Oh my, Gray fell for that didn't he' said Master Mavis as she looked disappointed.

'Uh, no need to lose hope, I'm sure he'll be more alert' replied Master Makarov as he felt a bit embarrassed.

'So the clones can be used as a decoy, great' mumbled Gray, soon after which all the other participants also reach this conclusion and they all begin to blend into the crowd, confusing the people watching this event. While looking for some participants, Gray hears someone calling his name, distracting him and leaving him open to be attacked by the real Nullpudding, giving Team Fairy Tail A a score of -2 and Team Raven Tail a score of +1.

'What the hell is going on? Is that guy taking things too personally?' said Cole as he looked at Gray getting attacked by Nullpudding repeatedly.

'These Fairy Tail losers never stood a chance, right sting?' said Lector, Sting's partner and an exceed.

'Yeah, you can say that again, those guys are getting pulverized, but I wonder why Rufus hasn't even moved yet' replied Sting as he looked at Rufus, who was on top of a cathedral with his eyes closed.

'Hmph, that guy definitely has something against Gray, the way he's targeting him is pretty evident' thought Reaper as he looked at Gray carefully. 'I say we have this competition in the bag' added Lector, soon after which Frosch, Rogue's partner and Exceed began cheering for Rufus.

'Well, you've been quiet Reaper, what are you thinking about?' asked Sting as he looked at him curiously.

'It's nothing, just was thinking about what the old man's gonna say about Rufus keeping him waiting' replied Reaper.

'You mean our Guildmaster? And yeah, you're right, I wouldn't want to be him if I fail this one' replied Sting.

'I honestly don't think he's standing there for no reason, he certainly does have a plan in his mind' interrupted Rogue.

'You worry too much about that guild master, I'd say you two to lighten up, and be a little more carefree' replied Reaper.

'What exactly do you mean? Asked Rogue curiously.

'All I'm saying is for you two to lighten up, it's just a stupid game' replied Reaper.

'We never take things from our Master lightly, for us, it's an order to win this games' interrupted Yukino. Reaper just nodded his head, and then looked at the points table, where he noticed Fairy Tail's both teams at the bottom of the table.

'What's happening? We're running out of time! Gray come on!' yelled out Mira, soon after which the entire guild started cheering. While everyone else had raked up their points, Fairy Tail was lagging behind by a big margin.

'Damn it, that Raventail guy just keeps coming, it's like he's after me or something' though Gray as he looked around.

'This is all too easy, it's time I eliminate the competition' mumbled Rufus as he was on top of a cathedral.

' Memory-Make: A Night of Falling Stars!' he exclaimed as he sent out beams of light aimed at the competitors scattered across the battleground, striking each and every single one of them, Nullpudding however dodged the attack and attempted to attack Rufus, but his attacks went through what was Rufus's memory of his body. Everyone expresses amazement at his magical skill. 'Woah! Can you believe it, such great skilled combined with finesse, it's no surprise why they've been number one throughout the years, that's Sabertooth for you everyone!' exclaimed the announcer, right after which Rufus's points skyrocketed and was placed at the top of the table.

The time was up, Fairy Tail was positioned at both second last and last positions of the table.

'I can't believe it, how did we lose that one?' said Cole as he looked around and then saw Raventail's guild master grinning.

'Something tells me there's a lot more going on than what's happening here' added Cole. Laxus just looked at his father and gave a nod.

'Ivan, you'll pay for whatever you're plotting' mumbled Master Makarov.

'See I told you, we had this one in the bag' said Lector as he watched Rufus raise his arms and hear the crowd cheer for him.

'I told you there won't be any competition, we might as well just hold back and let Rufus do everything for us' replied Rogue.

'I wouldn't be so sure though' interrupted Reaper. Everyone turned their attention towards him, soon after which he looked at Sting in the eye.

'The contest has just begun, there will be a lot of surprises, so you'd better watch your back' he added.

'I don't know who you're counting as favorites, but okay, I though for a moment Fairy Tail will give us a tough fight but that was just pathetic' replied Sting as he folded his arms.

'Oh well, if you're gonna stand at that height, don't fall down face first' replied Reaper as he looked at Cole and walked towards the chair and sat.

'Honestly Reaper, you need to lay back and relax, didn't you see Rufus out there? He took down those guys without breaking a sweat, and he's not half as powerful as Sting and Rogue, so I don't see where the competition is' interrupted Lector.

'Yeah, maybe you're right' replied Reaper with a tone of sarcasm as he looked at Cole once again. Rufus joined in the team, soon after which he was congratulated for his performance.

'Well Reaper, if that was the competition you kept reminding us about, I'd say it's just a waste of time' said Rufus with a smile.

'Yeah yeah bunny boy, now go and do your victory dance somewhere else' replied Reaper as he moved Rufus, who was standing right in front of him.

Cole watched as Gray stood motionless, and soon after which he shook his head and walked away, soon after which he turned his attention to Juvia, who had joined in right after coming back from the game.

'It's alright Juvia, we'll be sure to turn things around' said Cole in a bold tone as he saw her being upset.

'I'm sorry I let you all down, it's just, I don't know, strange, I felt I was being targeted over and over again' she replied in a tone of disappointment.

'You need to get some rest, don't worry too much about it and everything will be fine' added Ursa as she kept her hand on her shoulder.

'Now then, it's time for the battle rounds! The winner of these rounds will take 10 points, while the loser will be left with nothing, however, in the case of a tie, points will be shared between the two times. The battles however, will be chosen based on fan favorites, and the contestants can be called anytime, no matter how their condition is from the previous games! So let's get things on a roll shall we? The first match up for today's game is... Ursa Devitt from Team Fairy Tail B vs Flare Corona from Team Raventail!' said Mato, which followed a loud cheer from the crowd

'Huh? I.. I gotta fight first?' she mumbled as she felt a bit nervous.

'It's alright, I believe in you, now let's see what you've got' replied Cole, soon after which she got pumped up and was about to leave.

'So, Ursa is about to fight huh?' mumbled Natsu as he looked at her walk towards the arena.

'I haven't seen her use her skills for combat, now might be the chance for her to show what she can do' added Erza.

'Be careful Ursa, I don't know what Ivan has planned, but be on your guard at all times' mumbled Master Makarov.

'Ursa..' mumbled Yukino as she looked at her carefully.

'Alright Kid, it's been a while since I saw you fight, beat the crap out of her' thought Reaper as he looked at her and gave her a smile.

 _'Ursa, we're counting on you!'_


	6. Chapter 6 : Ursa vs Flare!

'Interesting to watch this young wizard, Ursa Devitt, who's only 16 years old, make her debut in the Grand Magic Games' said Yajima as he looked at her stand firm at the battlefield.

'Let's have some fun little girl' taunted Flare with a devilish smile on her face.

'Everyone's counting on me, Juvia failed the previous round and I won't fail this one, it's up to me to get the first points for the team' wondered Ursa as she looked at Master Mavis and the other guild members looking at her.

'Let the first match between Team Fairy Tail B and Raven Tail begin!' said the announcer soon after which Flare used Hair Shower: Thousand Birds to elongate her hair and fire several bundles of hair straight at Ursa, a if they were bullets. Ursa stood still, unmoved by the attack and, suddenly, as her attack closed in, Ursa opened her eyes and immediately created a sword of lightning and slashed through her hair. Flare looked at her in shock, while the crowd was amazed over Ursa's reflexes.

'Lightning embodiment?' mumbled Erza as she looked carefully.

'A sword out of lightning, damn that's pretty handy' said Cole.

'There's a lot more you don't know' interrupted Laxus.

'What exactly do you mean?' asked Cole curiously.

'I've trained with the kid for over a month, that kid has got some skill, speaking of which, there's a lot more in her than I expected, after an intense training session she refused to back down, it was like an unstoppable will to fight that took over her, nothing I had ever seen before' replied Laxus.

'I overlooked her at first, but she gave me a tough fight, she ain't playing around' added Gajeel.

Flare grunted over her hair being slashed, she angrily bursted her hair towards Ursa once again. Ursa narrowed her eyelids and quickly jumped as her hair slammed onto the solid ground. She then slashed through the incoming attacks midair, while positioning herself right on top of Flare.

'You're mine!' yelled out Flare as she was about to send all of her air in an attempt to constrict her. Ursa aimed her palm simultaneously and fired a net made out of lightning, covering her entire hair and electrocuting her in the process. Flare screamed in pain as she attempted to get rid of the net, but Ursa didn't hesitate to wrap her around in chains made out of lighting.

'Chains too huh? Interesting..' whispered Cole.

'Wow this kid isn't playing around, she's beating the crap out of her' said Sting as he watched along with Reaper and Rogue.

'You might as well be right about surprises' added Rogue. Ursa kicked her ferociously, while holding onto the chains and then swung her around, slamming her onto the ground to end her combo. The crowd cheered loudly as Ursa stood still, while Flare barely managed to land a single hit on her. Flare stood up, looking angry over Ursa getting better of her.

'Little girl you're messing with the wrong person here, so I would suggest you to suffer quietly, or else' said Flare, soon after which she sent her hair aimed at Ursa once again. Ursa attempted to use the same strategy, suddenly, the moment when her sword struck Flare's hair, it exploded.

'No way, she blew it up!' exclaimed Ursa as she braced herself after the explosion.

'You're wide open!' yelled Flare soon after which she sent in another series of attacks, Ursa quickly looked up and rolled over to dodge the attack She then quickly aimed and fired a lightning bolt right at Flare, knocking her back a couple of feet from where she stood. Flare then looked up to see Ursa's fist coming right at her. Ursa punched her face brutally, soon after which she knocked her airborne with a powerful kick. She charged her right fist as she kept an eye on her, and yelled 'Gauntlet of Zeus!', covering her entire fist with lightning and punching her, knocking her straight at the stadium's boundary wall.

'Woah, what a spectacular display of power! This 16 year old is taking the competition by storm! I mean literally! Did you see how she manipulated her lightning? Incredible!' yelled out the announcer.

'Is that.. Ursa?' mumbled Lucy as she kept looking at her.

'Woah, she's strong alright..' replied Natsu.

'Wow Ursa's really mopping the floor of Flare isn't she? Come on Ursa you can do this!' yelled Happy.

Flare stood up from the ground as she looked at Ursa. Ursa didn't give an expression and readied herself with a fighting stance.

'Pretty neat tricks you've got there, let's see you use them when I do this!' yelled Flare as she slammed her hair into the ground, digging through the surface. She gave a smile, as Ursa was on high alert and looked around to know what was going on.'Flare then looked at her and pointed at a direction. Ursa was confused at first, then turned around to see a young child amongst the spectators watching the match. She then looked carefully to see a band of hair moving around the child.

'No.. She's taking him hostage..' mumbled Ursa as she felt a bit nervous.

'That's right, suffer quietly and I'll let him live, make one mistake and it's curtains for him' said Flare right after which she surrounded Ursa with her bands of hair. Ursa looked around, and was preparing to defend herself, but the thought of losing an innocent life held her down.

'No.. I can't be selfish over this..' she though as she gave in, allowing Flare to get hold of her arms and legs.

'Now then, let's have some fun!' yelled Flare as she began to slam her body to the ground with brute force.

'What's happening? A minute ago she was destroying her, and now this?' said Sting.

'This doesn't interest me one bit, honestly Flare might have been holding back all this time' replied Rogue in a bold tone. Reaper didn't reply and kept looking at the battle.

'It's time for round 2!' yelled Flare as she began to strike Ursa's body with brute force, making her scream in pain. The crowd looked at the scene in awe.

'What seemed to be a one sided match has completely turned around, Flare's having the better of Ursa this time folks, and it does not look good for her' said the announcer, sympathizing for Ursa, who was clearly being tortured.

'It's no use, If I fight back, she'll kill him.. I can't..' thought Ursa as she braced herself.

'I.. I surr..' she said, right after which her mouth was covered by Flare's hair.

'Oh? What did you say? I can't hear you!' she yelled soon after which she slammed her onto the ground repeatedly. Cole and the others were shocked as they watched her being beaten up.

'This is personal man, she's not even letting her give up!' yelled Cole.

'But why would Ursa hold back? I mean, she's trying to do something we don't know' replied Juvia.

'Damn it! Ursa! Why are you holding back? Hurry up and take care of her already!' yelled out Natsu.

'This looks bad, I can see by the look in her eyes she's hopeless' replied Wendy.

'Well the Fairy Tail girl did fight pretty well at the start' said Rufus as he looked at Ursa being tortured.

'It's sad watching her being beaten up like this, I kinda feel sorry for her' replied Lector.

'Compassion for your enemy isn't good' said Rogue in a bold tone.

'Hey guys, where did Reaper go?' asked Frosh. Everyone else turned around to see him not being present.

'I dunno, maybe he went to the bathroom I guess' replied Sting. Cole looked at how Ursa was being beaten up and felt helpless as he kept watching.

'Come on Ursa! You can do it!' yelled Happy along with the rest of the guild members. Reaper was walking amongst the crowd, keeping a low profile by wearing a thick dark robe covering him. He then approached the seat where the kid taken hostage by Flare sat.

'Excuse me for a moment' said Reaper as he bent down and caught hold of Flare's hair. He burned it completely, giving Flare a shock, and making her let go of Ursa. Ursa got up, battered and bruised, and looked to see a man in a robe walking away. She then looked up to see Reaper not being present at the Sabertooth guild's pavilion.

'Thankyou..' she mumbled as she began to gather energy around her body and charged herself.

'What's this? Ursa still has some fight left inside her?' said the announcer as Ursa began to fire repeated bolts of lightning aimed at Flare. She quickly jumped to dodge the attack, but noticed Ursa follow through by using her lightning chain to catch hold of her legs.

'Take this!' yelled Ursa as she pulled her towards herself , soon after which she punched her as she closed in.

'Alright! She's back!' yelled Natsu with a smile.

'Come on Ursa! You can do it!' said Master Makarov as he looked intense during the heat of battle.

'Woah Reaper, you missed out on the action, Ursa was being beaten around then all of the sudden she started taking down Flare again!' said Frosh who was a bit too excited over what was going on.

'Oh, well I guess Ursa's gonna win' replied Reaper, right after which he walked and looked at her. Ursa was exhausted, but braced herself as she charged her body, dark clouds began to circle around the arena, the spectators were thrilled and began to cheer loudly as Ursa raised her arms.

'Static: Thunderbolt' yelled Ursa, soon after which a giant flash blinded everyone around the stadium. As the flash faded, Ursa stood still and her eyes were lit up as she saw Flare standing up.

'It.. It didn't come?' she mumbled, right after which she got kicked to her face. The time was over and Flare was the one standing.

'It seems Flare has won this round, that means 10 points for Raventail!' exclaimed the announcer, right after which the crowd began to cheer.

'What the hell happened? Her attack didn't work?' thought Gajeel as he was confused.

'She had this one in the bag, something was wrong, I'm not sure what but, her attack just faded away' replied Cole as he clenched his fist in anger. Laxus stood firm and looked at Ursa, who began to cry over her defeat, while Flare walked away. Laxus soon turned his attention towards the other team, who were shocked over what had happened.

'Oh no, poor Ursa..' said Wendy as she looked at her stand up.

'Grhh, those guys are gonna pay' added Natsu as he covered his fist with flames.

'For a moment I thought she won, but I guess it was inevitable' said Rogue.

'You gotta admit, she did fight pretty good' replied Lector. Reaper kept looking at Ursa, who wiped her face with her arm and walked away. He then turned his attention towards Raventail's members, who were rejoicing over Flare's victory.

'Raventail..' mumbled Reaper in a demonic voice as his eyes began to glow dark red.

'It's time for the second match for today! And it's going to be, Warcry from Team Quatro Cerberus vs Reaper from Team Sabertooth!' exclaimed the announcer, right after which the crowd began to cheer loudly.

'Great, I guess you're up' said Sting as he turned his attention towards Reaper, who looked at the giant screen with his name on it.

'Come on Reaper, show em what you got!' yelled Frosh, cheering for him as he walked away.

'I feel sorry for whoever is put up against him' said Rogue as he looked at Warcry walk in.

'I've never seen Reaper fight before, ever since he's joined the guild, he's been on solo missions every single time, never really got a chance to fight with him though' replied Sting.

Reaper walked out and looked around to see the crowd. He looked at the place where the Fairy Tail guild was sitting and turned his attention to the competitor, who had just arrived.

 _*So Reaper's gonna fight now, Let's see where this goes*._

'It's as if we fought him yesterday' mumbled Natsu as he looked at Reaper and thoughts kept pouring down in his mind.

'I agree, but as for now he's a competitor, not an enemy, we have to keep reminding ourselves that thought..' said Erza.

'Reaper... He's going to fight now' mumbled Kagura as she looked at him with a deadly stare and held her sword.

'Ursa, you alright?' asked Cole as she had just arrived.

'Yeah.. I'm.. Good' she replied with tears in her eyes.

'It's alright kid, you did pretty good, now brush up and be ready, we're gonna win this tournament no matter what' replied Gajeel.

'That's right, and no matter what, I'll make sure we make it through this' added Cole. Ursa gave a half smile and then looked at the screen. She was surprised for a moment, and then took a deep breath.

'Good luck Reaper..' she whispered as she looked at him.

'Let the second battle begin!' yelled the announcer. Reaper stood still while Warcry began to move around him.

'I'll let you hit me first, go on' said Reaper, right after which he halted and began to use his tear magic. His eyes began to water and he then began to cry.

'What the hell is this?' yelled out Reaper as he looked at Warcry crying and pumping himself.

'Crying makes my magic stronger!' he yelled soon after which he punched Reaper on his chest. Reaper just stood still and tanked the attack as if it was nothing. Warcry was amazed over this and was about to punch again, only to see Reaper holding one of his finger.

'Zap..' mumbled Reaper as he released a small amount of electricity, shocking him for a moment.

'Pathetic, I would have been better of fighting my own team than these losers (Reaper looks at the Sabertooth's guild master) the old man's watching, so let's just end it' thought Reaper as he used his punch blast to knock him back, followed by an alpha rocket to finish him off. Warcry was unable to stand and was knocked out cold after the attack.

'Incredible! It only took Reaper a few minutes to take him down! Just goes to show why they're the best in business!' exclaimed the announcer. 'That's 10 points for Sabertooth, and what do you know! They're on top!' he added with excitement.

'Wow, Reaper just destroyed that guy' said Sting.

'I mean, did he really even stand a chance? You know why he calls himself the Reaper, I mean just look at him!' added Lector. 'Do you think he's stronger than Orga?' asked Frosh.

'I heard Orga challenging him to a duel once, not sure what happened after that' replied Sting.

Reaper looked around and noticed the crowd cheering for him, he just turned around and began to walk away.

'So, he's just as strong as he was' said Natsu.

Cole kept looking at Reaper as he left the arena.

'Tough guy' said Gajeel.

'That was pretty impressive though' replied Juvia

. 'Cole, what are you thinking of?' asked Ursa out of curiosity.

'Oh it's nothing..' replied Cole, right after which he looked at Master Mavis, who immediately looked at him and gave a smile.

 _*She's confident about us winning this thing, and we should be too!*_

* * *

Need a few ideas for a main event game and 1 match-up, message me or leave it in the comments. Kudos~


	7. Chapter 7 : Enter the Fairy Conduit!

Reaper sat down and watched as the crowd chanted 'Sabertooth! Sabertooth!' louder and louder.

'Now that the second battle of the day is over, it's time for the third battle, and things have already started to heat up folks!' said the announcer after which the crowd roared.

'It's time to see the contestants for the third round of the day' said Yajima as he opened a letter and was a bit surprised to see the name given in that.

'Well this is strange' he said as he was a bit confused. Lola took the paper from his hand and was confused as well.

'Well the contestants for this round are going to be Jura from Lamia Scale, against Cole McGrath from Team Fairy Tail B!' said the announcer, after which everyone was shocked.

 _'What? Didn't my team already face a round? What's going on?'_

'But, didn't Ursa already fight for Team B?' said Master Makarov as he looked at the screen.

'Woah, Cole vs that bald guy, this is going to be good' interrupted Happy. Mato was grinning over the confusion, right after which he rushed into the commentary room and briefed the commentators.

'It seems there had been a confusion between the matchups, so it looks like Cole will be representing Team Fairy Tail A for this match, granted the members of his team agree to this decision, along with the members of Team Fairy Tail A' said Yajima, right after which the other members started looking at each other.

'Fat chance, we don't wanna risk injuring you or anything' said Gajeel.

'We have Mira for back up, go break a leg Cole' replied Laxus. Juvia and Ursa didn't reply, and Cole kept staring at the screen with his name on it.

 _'Represent Team Fairy Tail A for one match only, confusion or not, I'm fighting for Fairy Tail, and I shouldn't miss this opportunity, regardless of what happens'_

'I'm going in' replied Cole as he stepped out of the Team pavilion.

'Do you really think we should let Cole fight?' asked Lucy.

'No way! It's our turn, I don't want him to steal all the credit! Come on! I can take him down without breaking a sweat' interrupted Natsu, right after which Erza stopped him by punching his head.

'We don't need to think much, Jura is strong, one of the ten Wizard saints, even I'll give him a good fight, but.. He'll win it' replied Erza.

Cole walked towards Team A and waited for what they had to say, Erza looked at him for a while, and then shook her head.

'Hey Cole, it's really good to see you again' said Wendy as she extended her hand. Cole went forward and hugged her, making her smile, right after which Cole looked at the others.

'Good to see you all here' added Cole as he gave a smile.

'You too Erza, still with the attitude huh' said Cole after which he giggled.

'You can fight this round, but be careful, Jura is a tough opponent, one of the 10 wizard saints indeed, I wish you good luck' said Erza as she kept her hand on Cole's shoulder.

'Thanks, and don't worry, I'll do my best' Replied Cole as he walked away. Erza stared at him, as he walked into the battleground, with Jura waiting for him.

'I can't believe you let him fight' said Natsu who was upset over him not being chosen.

'It looks like Cole McGrath from Team Fairy Tail B will be representing Team Fairy Tail A for this one match between him and Jura of Team Lamia Scale' said the announcer, which surprised the other guild members.

'Woah, hey Reaper wake up!' yelled Frosh as he shook him around. Reaper moved around and opened his eyes from a short nap to see Frosh right on top of him.

'Yeah? What's up?' asked Reaper as he picked him up and put him on the ground.

'Cole McGrath is gonna fight Jura!' replied Frosh as he pointed at the screen, where Cole and Jura were waiting at the battleground for the fight to begin.

'So Cole's finally gonna be a part of the action, interesting' mumbled Reaper as he brought his chair near the edge of the watchout and sat down.

'What's so special about him?' asked Sting curiously.

'Yeah, you know him personally don't you?' questioned Rogue.

'Let's just say he's like a twin brother of mine' said Reaper with a smile, right after which he turned his attention towards the screen.

'Well this should be mildly amusing' replied Sting as he stood and watched.

'Cole doesn't stand a chance, he might have been related to Master Ur, but Jura is one of the 10 wizard saints, the most strongest wizards alive, this battle is already over' mumbled Lyon, along with his other guild members who were smiling.

'You can do it Cole' said Mira, along with the other guild members, who looked at Cole, staring right towards Jura, who was smiling while folding his hands.

'Well then Cole McGrath, I hope you make this match interesting for me because I'm starting to get bored' said Jura, as the dong was struck, signaling the start of the 3rd round. Cole began to charge his body ferociously.

'You asked for a fight, and I'll give you one' replied Cole as he fired a magnum bolt straight at Jura, who created a pillar out of earth to block his attack.

 _'Earth magic, alright buddy, let's see what tricks you've got up your sleeves'_

Cole kept firing his magnum bolts, making Jura summon multiple pillars to cancel out his attack. Cole then fired a rocket onto the air, missing Jura by a mile.

'Sloppy..' mumbled Rogue, Reaper grinned as Cole gave a smile. He then struck a small alpha bolt onto Jura, mildly damaging you.

'Hah, if this is the extent of your power, then I shouldn't even bother using my magic against you' said Jura, soon after which he looked up to see the rocket diverge at him, detonating on impact and sending him flying right towards Cole. Cole immediately waited for him to close in and swung his amp, knocking him away, right after which he used his lightning tether to hatch onto him, ending the combo by dropping on a sticky bomb on him and using an Alpha rocket to knock him onto the ground. Cole used his static thrusters to land onto the ground, right after which his sticky grenade detonated, causing a large cloud of smoke to cover the area.

'Wow, I'm having second thoughts about this Cole guy' said Lector as he looked at the match.

'That was impressive' said Jura as he stood up, looking as if nothing had happened to him.

 _'This guy barely looks scratched from all that'_

Cole grunted and charged lightning around his right arm.

'Till now I've been playing the defensive game, it's time I go on the offensive for a while, don't you think?' said Jura as he extended his hand and yelled 'Iron Rock Fist!' sending out a massive chunk of rock in the shape of a clenched fist aimed at Cole. Cole kept looking at it, as it approached, right after which he slammed his charged fist right onto the incoming attack, releasing a large shock wave, making everyone take cover under their seats.

'That won't be good enough' said Jura as he attempted to boost his attack, but the rock began to crumble as Cole wasn't ready to give up either.

'Chew on this!' yelled Cole as he fired an ice missile at Jura, forcing him to dodge, giving Cole an opportunity to strike back. Cole broke the rock fist and further fired multiple alpha rockets at Jura, forcing him to create a defensive wall to block out the attack.

 _'I've got it, he can't move fast, so he has to use those rocks to block out any attack.'_

Jura then fired multiple rocks, which surrounded Cole as he looked completely clueless.

'It's the end for him' mumbled Lyon as the rocks began to cover his entire body.

'Oh no, I remember how he took out the leader of the Oracion Seis with that move' said Erza as she looked.

'No.. Cole..' mumbled Mira as rocks covered Cole's entire body.

'Cole? You're actually losing this one?' thought Reaper as he kept looking at him.

'You fought well, but it's over' said Jura as he clenched his fist and yelled

'Supreme King Rock Crush', causing two giant hands to crush Cole's rock tomb. The crowd cheered as there wasn't any sign of movement within the rocks.

'No.. He' whispered Happy as tears began to fall off his eyes.

'Cole.. Please be alright' mumbled Ursa, right after which Laxus grunted. Suddenly, Cole struck his arm out with his amp and blasted his way out, surprising everyone in the stadium, after which the crowd roared. Cole came out, with pieces of ice falling off of his body.

'He created a body armor out of ice.. In such a small amount of time.. Incredible' said Jura as Cole took position and bursted at Jura with his frost dash, repeatedly attacking him as he circled around him, right after which he stuck a sticky grenade on him and swung his amp, knocking him airborne. Cole immediately used his lightning tether and slammed him onto the ground, right after which he fired an alpha rocket, sending him back a couple of meters.

'That hurt!' yelled Cole as lightning flickered around his body.

'You're impressive Cole McGrath, but this has gone long enough, let's end this' said Jura as he posed, charging his palm.

 _'Time's running out, it's all or nothing'_

Cole charged his body as he used his frost dash to close in, Jura waited for him to get closer and closer.

'Goodbye' said Jura as he thrust his palm seconds before Cole punched him. Cole had a split second to react and used his ice jump to dodge the attack. Jura's palm cracked the ice by which Cole had jumped. He immediately used his thunder drop and swung his amp ferociously, rattling Jura as he took the attacks, soon after which he swirled his arms together and sent out a massive ionic tornado at him. Sending his body flying across the battlefield. The crowd watched as the Twister filled with violent lightning storms raged across the battlefield. They braced themselves as the wind grew stronger and stronger, a few seconds after which Jura's body got tossed onto the ground. Cole panted as he looked at Jura, who was motionless after the attack. The dong struck, signaling the end of the 3rd round.

'Incredible! The underdogs have struck! After losing out in the first event and in one of the battle rounds, Cole has managed to give them a fighting chance!' said the announcer who was thrilled by the result.

'Indeed, Fairy Tail know this is just the first day, and what a way to secure their first points, by taking down one of the strongest wizards in Fiore' replied Yajima, soon after which the crowd cheered for Cole as he raised his arm.

 _'That was a tough fight, could have ended up pretty bad if it wasn't for my frost armor, I'm guessing the time I spent training is paying off'_

Cole looked around to see his guild members cheering out loudly for him as he gave them a smile.

'You did a good job Cole!' yelled Master Mavis after giving a thumbs up.

'I knew he could do it' mumbled Erza with a smile. 'That was pretty intense, but I'm glad we won' replied Wendy. Cole looked at his side to see Jura stand up and look at him with a smile.

'Uh, no hard feelings right?' asked Cole in a friendly tone.

'You're strong Cole, you managed to make the most out of my mistake, of underestimating you, There's a lot more into this competition than I had expected' replied Jura, soon after which he left.

'I can't believe it, Jura lost, to Cole?' said Lyon as he looked completely shocked, along with the rest of his guild members.

'Well what do you, the Fairy Tail guys managed to pull off a victory, might as well be their last' said Sting with a smile.

'I still believe the result will be the same as always' replied Rogue. Reaper just grinned and looked at Cole, as he walked off the field.

'Interesting..' mumbled Reaper as he kept looking at him, only to get interrupted by Frosh.

'Now then, it's time for the final match of Day 1 folks, we've seen some spectacular action unfold here, some intense battles have already been dealt with, so who're gonna be our final competitors you may think?' asked the announcer, right after which he himself answered his own question.

'It's going to be Ren Akatsuki vs. Araña Webb'. The crowd began to cheer loudly for Ren as he had a large female fanbase.

'Oh great, it's gonna be one of those bunny boys' mumbled Reaper in a tone of disappointment. Cole walked past Team Fairy Tail A, who stopped him as he walked past them.

'Wow Cole! You were amazing out there' exclaimed Lucy.

'Yeah, thanks to you we've finally managed to rake in some points' added Wendy.

'I still would have fought better, but, good job anyways' said Natsu with a smile.

'You did pretty good Cole, I'm proud of you, we all are' said Erza as she placed her hand on his shoulder.

'Thanks guys, we still have a long way to go in this competition, so good luck to you all' replied Cole soon after which he joined his team.

As Cole returned to his team, he was greeted by a big pat on his back from Laxus along with Gajeel.

'Pretty neat tricks you've got, man that was great to watch' said Gajeel.

'Hold on, let the big guy sit down for now, let it all sink in' replied Laxus.

'Still a long way to go guys, but with this victory, it's time we turn things around' said Cole with a determined look.

'Isn't that right Ursa? Your idol here wants us to pick ourselves up from the dirt and move on' said Laxus, right after which Cole immediately looked at her.

'Your idol?' asked Cole curiously.

'Well, yeah..' she replied as she turned around and looked at him with a smile.

 _'Wow.. I mean.. I'd never would have thought I'd be this important for someone'._

'Still a sad thing we didn't get the 10 points' interrupted Juvia, soon after which a slight feeling of disappointment kicked in within the team.

'Thanks for killing the mood Juvia!' exclaimed Gajeel.

'Well I didn't say anything wrong did I?' asked Juvia in a loud tone. Cole looked at the team argue a bit, soon after which he looked at his shoulder and gazed upon his emblem.

 _'This is my home..'_


	8. Chapter 8 : Crimson

As the battle between Ren and Aranna had begun, everyone watched as the two exchanged blows. The crowd had been cheering for Ren throughout the match, owing to his large fanbase.

'This match really is boring' said Sting as he sat down near Reaper.

'Well what did you expect, they're not nearly half as strong as our guild is' added Lector. Reaper kept looking at the screen, and then turned his head to see Lector talking to Sting, he felt a bit uneasy, soon after which he turned around to see Frosh standing near Rogue.

'Hey Frosh, mind sitting next to me for a while?' asked Reaper curiously.

'Well alright Reaper, what's wrong?' asked Frosh as he approached him. Reaper turned his head to see Rogue staring at him.

'Alright (Reaper gathered energy around his right arm).

'Woah..' exclaimed Frosh as he kept staring at it.

'Now then, I want you to keep your paw underneath it' said Reaper as the lightning began to converge itself into a sphere.

'Wow!' exclaimed Frosh as the sphere levitated above his paw. Rogue grunted over what he saw. He was about to interrupt, seconds before he saw Frosh playing with the electric sphere. Rogue hesitated at first, then grabbed the sphere off of Frosh's paws.

'That's too dangerous Frosh' interrupted Rogue right after which he clamped his fist, destroying the sphere.

'Come on, I know what I'm doing' replied Reaper as he stood up and looked at Rogue.

'I already told you before Reaper, do not provoke me, or it'll be your last' replied Rogue as he held Frosh.

'Killjoy..' mumbled Reaper as he turned around and sat on his seat.

'What's up with those two?' asked Lector.

'I don't know, Rogue is just too overprotective about Frosh, he wouldn't let anyone get near him' replied Sting.

'I'm afraid it's a lot more than that' interrupted Yukino. Sting and Lector turned their attention towards her, right after which she added.

'Rogue knows something about Reaper that we don't, I still remember the first day Reaper entered the guild hall with Menerva, while most of us didn't give a response, I noticed how Rogue was hesitating to greet him. It's obvious he knew him before'. Sting turned around to see Reaper looking at the screen, and just nodded.

'The winner is Ren Akatsuki from Team Blue Pegasus!' said the announcer, after which the crowd cheered loudly.

'Not too shabby huh?' said Hibiki as he adjusted his hair.

'Indeed, you never underestimate the trimens! Mannn!' said Ichiya, after which him along with the other 3 began posing.

'That's a win for the prettyboys' said Gajeel.

'Well then, I guess they'll show us the scoreboard now huh' added Laxus.

'That is gonna be it for the first day of the Grand Magic Games, let us see where the competitors stand out.' said the announcer, right after which a giant screen popped out, showing the points table after the events of Day 1'. Team Sabertooth was first with 20 points, followed by Raventail being second with 18 points. Team Blue Pegasus was placed third with 14 points, and to everyone's surprise, Team Fairy Tail A was 4th with 10 points, owing to Cole's victory over Jura. Team Lamia Scale and Team Mermaid Heel were placed 5th and 6th respectively with 6 and 3 points each. Team Quatro Cerberus were placed 7th with 2 points, while at the bottom were Team Fairy Tail B, with one point.

'Well well, I guess we managed to score one at least, damn' mumbled Gajeel in a low tone. Ursa stared at the ground for a while, but Cole wasn't upset over what had happened. 'look on the bright side, our other team is 4th' said Cole in an attempt to cheer them up.

'Yeah, thanks to you' replied Laxus.

 _'There's something about this team thing that makes me wonder, they're actually not celebrating our second team's win, who knows, maybe it's some sort of prize or something, but it doesn't matter, not as long as Fairy Tail is winning'_

'So Fairy Tail is 4th, not a bad start don't you think?' asked Mira.

'Not a bad one indeed, but wait until tomorrow, Fairy Tail will be shooting themselves at the top spot within no time!' exclaimed Romeo.

'Let's all hope that happens, in the meanwhile, Master Mavis, care to join us at the tavern tonight? We'll be discussing over what all needs to be done tomorrow' asked Master Makarov.

'Alright, I'll be there, see you later' she replied with a smile, after which she began to walk away. The crowd began to leave, followed by the guild members.

'Let's get going Reaper' said Sting as he and his guild members were about to leave. Reaper was still standing and staring at something, soon after which a poke on his back caught his attention.

'Huh.. Yeah.. I'll be there in a while' replied Reaper as he kept staring.

'Alright, but don't be too late, you wouldn't wanna keep the guild master waiting' replied Lector.

'Don't worry about it' said Reaper as they left. A few minutes later, Reaper gave a grin and left the pavilion.

The sun was about to set, the streets of the city began to lighten up for the night to come.

'Hey look, it's those guys from Raventail!' said one of the civilians as he watched the guild members walk through the streets.

'Wow they're so cool!' added another bystander.

'Hey! I would love to get your autograph' said a man as he approached Flare. Flare was surprised for a while, soon after which Alexei interrupted by saying they were in a hurry. Seconds before the sun had set, the Raventail guild members had entered their Tavern where they were supposed to rest throughout the tournament.

'Hey, I would like to have a drink! Make it quick!' yelled out Alexei as he stepped in and walked towards the bar. Suddenly, a red lightning bolt had struck his mask, knocking him against the wall.

'Intruder!' yelled out Kurohebi as him, along with the other members stood in front of Alexei.

'Who dares invade us?' yelled out Alexei, soon after which a Man in a black hood, wearing a mask covering his face, but revealing his eyes, stepped out.

'They call me Crimson' replied the man as he charged his hands with bright red lightning. Flare got a bit hasty and attempted to attack him with her hair, but Crimson caught hold of it.

'Bad idea!' she yelled as she ignited her hair, but Crimson didn't let go, instead he held onto it and released a jolt of electricity, zapping Flare and knocking her unconscious. Before the other members could attack, Alexei had stopped them before they made their move.

'What do you want Crimson? Or you want me to let the security know a madman has entered our Tavern' he asked curiously.

'I want answers, and you better be ready to speak up, or there won't be a Raventail left to participate tomorrow' replied Crimson as he charged his fist.

'First things first, I saw your buddy over here use his powers to cancel out Ursa's attack earlier today, and not only that, your members have been specifically targeting Fairy Tail throughout the whole event, I don't know what history you have with them, I couldn't care less' said Crimson as he walked around.

'If you don't care, then what is this all about?' asked Alexei. Crimson turned his attention towards him and grabbed his collar in anger.

'You wanna know what's this about? I'll show you what it feels like when you shatter someone's dreams' replied Crimson as he punched Alexei's face, breaking his mask and knocking him straight towards the wall.

'Alright! That's it, it's time we teach you some manners!' yelled out Kurohebi as he was about to attack, only to be stopped by Alexei, hiding his face with one hand and raising his other hand.

'No! Don't fight!' he yelled out, soon after which he wore another mask.

'I don't know what you might be talking about, but please, we will not cheat in the event ever again, and that's a promise' he said as he stood up. Crimson didn't reply, he only stepped forward and delivered a powerful punch to Obra, instantly knocking him out cold.

'That's for the little girl, punk!' said Crimson soon after which he began to walk away.

'Oh, and one more move like that, I'll tell the world who you really are Alexei, or should I say, Ivan' he added as he opened the door and left.

Crimson stepped out and immediately climbed on top of a building, he removed his mask and revealed himself as Reaper. Reaper looked around and kept the robe along with the mask inside his sling bag, similar to the one Cole owned and took a deep breath.

'Alright, better head back to the tavern' he mumbled as he jumped across the roofs as twilight faded. Meanwhile, at the Sabertooth Tavern, the guild master, Jiemma was sitting on his throne like chair and addressing the other guild members, who were standing and listening to what he said.

'Our performance during the first day is good but I expected better from you five, this contest is not about winning, it's about showing the world what we can do, we're ruthless when we fight and today I failed to see a display of ruthlessness from you' he said, right after which the 4 members stood in attention. Jiemma stood up and walked towards them. He grunted as he looked away.

'Where is Reaper?' he yelled at the top of his voice.

'Master, he said he'll be here in an hour, but he hasn't returned yet' said Frosh, right after which Jiemma turned his attention towards him.

'Oh? Did I ask you?' asked Jiemma as he stared at him.

'Uhh..' responded Frosh as he began to shiver, Rogue caught him and held him, right after which Jiemma extended his hand, ordering Rogue to hand him over. Rogue hesitated, but handed over Frosh. Jiemma held him, soon after which he tossed him up, slamming him on the roof , right after which he caught him.

'What did you say? Reaper will be back in an hour? I'll have fun with you till then' he said as he kept tossing him against the wall again and again. Rogue attempted to stop him but Sting caught hold of him and covered his mouth before he could say anything. Suddenly, the door knob opened and Reaper had entered the hall.

'Reaper.. You're here..' mumbled Frosh as he was bruised and couldn't move.

'Frosh? What the hell?' said Reaper as he was shocked over seeing him hurt.

'So you're finally here' said Jiemma as he tossed Frosh away, slamming him against the wall. Rogue ran to pick him up and held him close, shivering as he watched Jiemma walk towards Reaper.

'You..' said Reaper as he looked at him.

'Reaper, how dare you disrespect me by missing the team meeting?' asked Jiemma as he stood right in front of hime.

'What about it? All you guys ever bloat about is being strong and not showing any signs of weaknesses, where's the TEAM in that?' answered Reaper, surprising everyone as he back answered.

'So you're saying your knowledge is superior than mine?' said Jiemma.

'Even old men like you should be open to learning new things' he replied, soon after which he got punched, knocking him hard against the back wall.

'Maybe you'll keep that in mind before disrespecting me ever again' said Jiemma soon after which he turned around.

Reaper stood up in anger, charging his body ferociously, he then looked at Frosh, who was shaking his head, signaling him not to fight. Reaper calmed down and stood near the team seconds later.

'Very well, now that you're all here, let me remind you something, not a single game should be lost throughout the tournament, this isn't about winning, it's about showing the world our power' said Jiemma, right after which the others nodded and stood in attention. Reaper didn't respond, he just kept staring at him, with his eyes glowing red as Jiemma kept talking.

At the Fairy Tail tavern, both the teams had joined in on the discussion as Master Makarov was found sitting near the bar and drinking along with Mira. Cole was standing all by himself near a table and looking around the members talking to each other.

'Hey Cole..' said a voice very familiar to him. He turned to his right to see Wendy standing right next to him.

'Oh, hey Wendy, how's it going?' asked Cole as he looked at her with a smile.

'It's been great, what about you? How come you're here? And did you bring something from New Marais?' she asked curiously as more and more questions popped up in her mind.

 _'Wow, she's really curious, I've got some questions of my own, for instance how on Earth is Ursa suddenly older than her?'_

'Uh, why don't we sit down and have a talk over dinner?' Cole politely asked her to which Wendy nodded.

'By the way Cole' said Wendy, catching his attention.

'Yeah? What is it?' asked Cole.

'Erza wanted to meet you outside, she's waiting for you by the lamp post' said Wendy. Cole didn't respond for a while, after which he shook his head and gave a smile.

'Alright, I'll see her and join you by the table real soon okay?' said Cole to which Wendy replied with a smile.

 _'She probably wants to thank me for the games I guess, Erza really does have a reputation and this might be so she doesn't get embarrassed in front of her friends, can't blame her for that'_

'Hey Cole! Where are you going?' yelled out Natsu as Cole walked past him and Lucy.

'I'm just... Gonna have some fresh air..' replied Cole as he scratched his head.

 _'Wouldn't want Natsu to interrupt her, she probably needs to talk to me alone'._

'Come on, we just came here, you're already feeling homesick?' added Lucy. 'Nah, not homesick, just need a walk around town to brush up memories you know, it's been a long time since I came to Crocus before' replied Cole, to which the others gave a smile.

'Yeah, it really has been' said Ursa with a smile.

 _'I remember walking around with her in a town not far from her, it's funny how things change'_

'Hey Cole, while you're at it, mind telling me what's this thing is?' interrupted Laxus as he held Cole's amp.

'The amp? Just give it a jolt of of electricity and see what happens' replied Cole, soon after which Laxus looked at it and began to release lightning off of his hands, illuminating the amp in a bright yellow color.

'You know, weapons aren't my kind of thing but this is impressive' said Laxus with a smile. Laxus swung it around a couple of times

'Careful big guy, you might hurt someone' said Natsu soon after which Laxus banged his head with the amp.

'Oops, guess I did' replied Laxus while grinning, making everyone else laugh at the hall. Between all the commotion Cole walked out of the hall.

Cole walked into the streets during the night. As the skies turned darker by the second, he looked around to see the streets full of people. His eyes were in search for her as he looked around and couldn't find her

 _'Alright Erza, where are you?'_


	9. Chapter 9 : The time off

Cole kept looking around the streets in search of her, soon after which a thought popped up in his mind.

'Wendy said by the lamp post, so that means she's right there..' mumbled Cole as he saw a big lamp post near the tavern. Cole walked towards it and saw Erza leaning against it and standing with her eyes closed and her arms folded.

'Erza..' said Cole as he stood near her. Erza opened her eyes to see Cole standing right in front of him.

'Oh, you're here' she replied as she looked at him.

'Yeah, Wendy told me you needed to talk so.. I'm here' replied Cole, right after which Erza interrupted him.

'I know.. It's just that, I wanted to thank you for the victory today' she replied.

'You don't need to thank me for that, I'm here because I want Fairy Tail to win, and that's what I did right there' replied Cole with a smile.

'I appreciate it' said Erza as she stared at the ground. Cole didn't reply for a while.

'Alright then, I'll join you at the Tavern, dinner's about to get served' said Cole after which he turned around and was about to leave. Erza caught hold of his arm.

'Wait..' she said, making Cole turn around.

'What's wron..' asked Cole, pausing in between as he saw tears rolling down her eyes.

'Erza?' he asked curiously.

'Cole, I'm sorry' she said as she wiped off her tears.

'For what Erza?' he asked as he was clueless over her sudden change in behavior.

'For all those times I misjudged you. I never really gave you a chance, mistreated you, made you look like a criminal in front of the entire guild. I did what I thought was right, but I was wrong. I shouldn't have kicked you out of the guild that day, Reaper exists because of me' she replied with tears rolling off of her cheeks.

'Erza..' whispered Cole, soon after which she looked at him.

'Look at everyone out there Cole, each and every single one of them welcomed you to the guild, except me' she added.

'Erza.. It's alright.. That was a long time ago, I really understand why you did that, you were just looking out for your friends' replied Cole.

'It's not alright, after all that, you have all rights to hold a grudge against me, Cole' she replied as she stared at the ground.

 _*Damn, I never really thought of what she did as something personal, well she does feel terrible for what she has done, but she shouldn't, because I never really felt bad about it*_

'Erza, come on, I never really took anything personal, so there's no point on looking back at it. And yeah, don't blame yourself for Reaper being out there, he's my past and my responsibility, so don't take it out on yourself' replied Cole. Erza didn't reply and kept staring at the ground.

'I never had a grudge against you, I always respected the way you thought, you'd make a great guild master you know' Cole further added, which lit up her eyes.

'It's getting pretty late, so let's go have dinner shall we? You can sit with Wendy and me if you want' said Cole. Erza smiled and nodded as the two headed towards the tavern.

Back at the Sabertooth Tavern, after Jiemma was done with his speech, the guild members were making preparations for dinner. Reaper wasn't around the scene as the other members had their food.

'Hey, where's Reaper?' asked Frosh as he looked around. 'Beats me, last I saw him was him walking around the hall, he had a weird look on his face, probably went to his room after what happened with Master Jiemma' replied Lector as the two were having food.

'Oh, he'll miss dinner if he doesn't show up right now' said Frosh.

'He probably doesn't want to eat anyways' replied Lector. Frosh was bruised due to the previous incident. He stood up and took a plate, put in some chicken wings and a bread loaf.

'Where are you going with that?' asked Lector who was a bit surprised.

'I'll be right back..' he replied as he took the plate and left the dining area. Frosh had to climb up a staircase, which he managed to do so, despite being injured. Upon nearing Reaper's room, he knocked the door. Reaper was sitting beside the window and staring at the night sky, only to get interrupted by knocks on his door.

'What do you want?' yelled Reaper out loud as he looked at the door.

'I.. Thought u need some food..' replied Frosh.

'Frosh?' mumbled Reaper as he rushed towards the door to see Frosh standing right in front of him with a plate full of food.

'Oh.. Come in..' replied Reaper as he let him in and closed the door. Reaper took off the plate from Frosh and kept it on the table, soon after which he sat on the ground and looked at him.

'Now you're gonna tell me, why did you bring food' asked Reaper in a soft tone.

'You didn't show up for dinner and I thought you were hungry' replied Frosh. Reaper soon noticed the injuries on Frosh's body.

'Oh, Jiemma did that..' said Reaper as he held his paw.

'Ow!' yelled Frosh as Reaper held his paw a little to hard.

'Alright.. Lie down, this won't hurt a bit' said Reaper, to which Frosh lied down. Reaper gathered electricity around his hands and used his pulse heal on Frosh.

'Wow, I can move my arm again!' he yelled out loudly. Reaper grinned as he saw him move around, soon after which Reaper stood up and walked towards the window. Frosh looked at Reaper staring out of the window, he took the plate and walked towards him.

'Hey, you still haven't eaten anything' he said, catching Reaper's attention.

'Oh, you know what, you're right' said Reaper as he took the plate and took a bite of the chicken wing.

'Wow, I haven't eaten good food in years, so this is what chicken wings taste like' thought Reaper as he took another bite.

'Thanks Frosh' said Reaper as he finished his meal and looked at him.

'No problem Reaper!' replied Frosh as he lifted his paw. Reaper then walked towards the window and looked at people walking across the streets.

'What are you looking at?' asked Frosh in curiosity.

'Oh you're still here' replied Reaper as he sat on the ground. Frosh walked towards him.

'You look sad, is something wrong?' asked Frosh curiously.

'Nothing really, it's just, so complicated it's hard to explain' replied Reaper.

'Well if you can't tell me it's okay, but don't be all by yourself Reaper' said Frosh soon after which he hugged him. Reaper's eyes were lit up as he looked at Frosh hugging him.

'Thanks Frosh, for looking out for me, now you better get going before Rogue starts searching for you' replied Reaper as he stood up and walked towards the door.

'Goodnight Reaper' said Frosh, right after which Reaper closed the door without replying. He stood near the door for a while as thoughts began to pour into his mind.

'Frosh..' he mumbled as he sat on his bead. He opened his sling bag and took out the mask of Crimson. He wore the mask along with the black robe which covered his entire body and jumped out of the Tavern window.

Cole had entered the guild hall along with Erza, where the two had joined Wendy and had ordered food for dinner. As they waited for food, Wendy broke the silence by asking a question.

'So Cole, how's things working out at New Marais?' she asked curiously. 'Ah well, not much has changed. A lot of people did start respecting me though' replied Cole to which Wendy gave a smile.

'I'm glad everything is working out for you' she replied.

'But, I don't get it.. How come Ursa is older than Wendy now?' asked Cole curiously.

'It's a long story, we were trapped under Tenrou Island after Acnologia had attacked us, henceforth we were sealed in time, Ursa wasn't with us during that day' replied Erza.

 _*Sealed within time huh, well that does explain everything*._

'So Ursa is all of the sudden older than you now' said Cole, to which Wendy felt a bit embarrassed.

'Yeah that's true' replied Ursa as she came out of the kitchen with their food.

'Hey Ursa! Take a seat' said Cole, to which Ursa didn't respond, but sat a few seconds later.

'So, when these guys were gone you were here all by yourself?' asked Cole.

'Yeah, things weren't going good for us, for seven years I watched as the guild lose it's shape' she replied.

'Must have been tough for you' said Cole as he looked at her.

'It really was, but, we managed to hold ourselves together, as we knew our friends are out there and they'll be back no matter what' she replied as a teardrop fell off of her cheek.

It was an hour before midnight, as the streets got empty. More and more people shut off the lights of their homes, making the streets dim. A woman was walking by when suddenly, she was approached by a group of men.

'What's a lady like you doing outside at this time?' taunted a man.

'Damn, look at those curves' taunted another. The young woman felt uneasy and began running, seconds before she was caught by one of them. She began to scream for help, but no one came to her aid in the empty streets. Suddenly, a man in a black robe had jumped from a roof, knocking back the men.

'Let her go' said the man, revealed to be Crimson as he gave a deadly stare at the man. The man was about to take out his knife, seconds before he was shot on his head, instantly paralyzing him. The others saw the scene and were about to leave, only to be caught by the royal guards. As more and more guards walked into the scene, Crimson was standing beside the woman and looking around.

'Freeze, don't move or you'll be subdued' said one of the guards.

'Wait! He saved me' replied the woman, to which the guards stopped aiming their weapons.

'Princess Hisui! There you are' yelled out a man in armor as he came sprinting towards the two.

'Arcadios' she said as the man stood in front of her. 'Princess?' asked Reaper, soon after which Arcadios replied.'You've never seen Princess Hisui before?'

'Can't say I have, but a pleasure meeting you here your highness' replied Reaper.

'What just happened, why were you screaming for help?' asked Arcadios.

'I don't know, I was so tensed and just wanted to walk out without getting any attention' she replied, soon after which she looked at Crimson.

'Thank you for saving my life..' she added, soon after which Reaper replied.

'It's Crimson, and the streets aren't really safe during the night, personal experience' he replied.

'Crimson.. I am at your debt for saving Princess Hisui's life' said Arcadios as he bowed before him.

'Well, no need to get all formal about it, just make sure she doesn't go on her own' replied Crimson.

'Till our paths cross again Crimson' said Hisui after which she left the area. Reaper waited for them to leave, soon after which he climbed a rooftop and kept his eyes wide open.

'So that's how I ended up getting my powers' explained Cole as the others deeply listened to what he had to say.

'Wow, if only magic was that easy' replied Wendy.

'It's never too easy, took me a year to master my powers, was one hell of a ride, that's all I can say' replied Cole.

'Power is one thing, skill is another' said Erza.

'Well, speaking about New Marais,did you bring something from there?' asked Wendy curiously.

'As a matter of fact I did' replied Cole as he opened his sling bag and took out his phone.

'A slab of glass?' asked Erza.

'It's called a smartphone, you can do a lot of cool things, like for instance' replied Cole, soon after which he tapped onto the camera icon and opened the front camera.

'Wow, it's like a mirror' exclaimed Wendy as she stood near him.

'Let me see what's all the commotion about' interrupted Erza as she stood right in front of Cole. Erza pushed herself in to see how she looks like in the phone, almost making Cole drop it.

'Hey! What are you guys doing? I wanna join too!' yelled Natsu as he ran towards the trio.

'Hold it!' ordered Erza, instantly stopping Natsu.

'Interesting' said Erza as she extended her hand to take the phone off of Cole's hands. She moved it around, seeing her face in different different backgrounds. She then tossed it back to Cole.

'So it's like a mirror, what else can it do?' she asked curiously.

'Well, since you asked..' replied Cole as he tapped on his phone and then handed it over to Erza.

'Look at yourself now' he said, soon after which Erza looked at the screen, to see her face get covered with a dog nose and dog ears.

'What kind of sorcery is this?' she yelled out as she dropped the phone and began touching her face. Cole laughed over her reaction, to which Erza grabbed his collar and looked at him in anger.

'You think this is funny? Change me back or else..' she yelled, only to be interrupted by Ursa.

'Hey Erza, you're face is fine..' said Ursa as she handed over a real mirror.

'Oh..' she replied, soon after which she looked at Cole, who was looking at her.

'That wasn't funny' she said as she folded her hands.

'Wasn't supposed to be funny, they're called filters' replied Cole, who still couldn't control laughing over her reaction. Natsu picked up Cole's phone and looked at himself, to see the same dog filter on his face.

'Boring!' yelled Natsu, soon after which he swiped and selected the dragon filter.

'Alright!' yelled Natsu as he saw his face get covered with a Dragon mask.

'I am a dragon! I'll burn you all!' yelled out Natsu, walking around the tavern.

'Natsu.. Don't burn my phone please..' mumbled Cole as he looked at him carefully.

Cole looked around watched as Lucy punched Natsu's head and took the phone off him, she randomly pressed a button, and ended up taking a picture.

'Hey Lucy, toss me the phone!' yelled Cole.

'Okay!' she replied after which she threw the phone straight at him. Cole opened the gallery and saw the pic, to which he chuckled.

'Hey Natsu, come over here..' said Cole as he giggled. Natsu was clueless, but came nonetheless.

'Is that Lucy? Hahahahahaah! Her face looks like she ate a cow!' yelled out Natsu as he laughed out loud. Lucy's face got red as she heard what Natsu said.

'Hey Lucy! Thanks for the new wallpaper!' said Cole as he showed her the pic.

'What the? Noo!' she yelled as she tried to snatch Cole's phone.

'No way, this is a keeper' said Cole.

'Jerks!' yelled Lucy as she walked away.


	10. Chapter 10 : The Big Race

'Gather around everyone, Master Mavis has something important to tell us' said Master Makarov, soon after which everyone circled around her.

'Could be briefing about what's gonna go down tomorrow, being the guild master and all, she's really inspiring'.

'Our first team has managed to score 10 points, courtesy of Cole here' she said, soon after which Laxus patted Cole's back.

'But our second team is way far behind, with only 1 point' she added, soon after which Gajeel groaned in disappointment.

'But that's fine right? I mean we just need to get one team win somehow, and seeing Team A has a head start, I guess we can call it a day' replied Cole, only to get interrupted by his team mates.

'Nah uh man, there's a lot more in stake here' said Gajeel.

'Well apart from the prize money, what else can you get?' asked Cole curiously.

'The winner gets to do anything they want with the other team for one day' replied Laxus, lighting up Cole's eyes

'Anything I want huh?' mumbled Cole as he started picturing himself resting on a lawnchair, while Natsu fires up a grill and cooks him some fresh meat.

'Oh yeah, that would be something' said Cole with a smile.

'Please don't break my fantasy of having the time of life with my love Gray!' mumbled Juvia.

'Hey! I didn't sign up for this!' yelled out Gray.

'Well it's too late for that!' replied Cole with a grin. The five members of the teams went through a stare down. Cole was grinning as he stared at Natsu, who gave him a smile back.

'Just you wait, we'll be the ones winning this for Fairy Tail' said Natsu with a thumbs up.

'We'll see pyro' replied Laxus.

'There's a healthy sense of competition between you all!' exclaimed Master Mavis, soon after which the others turned their attention towards her.

'Now then, I'm gonna assign a team leader in both of the teams, the team leader will get to chose who gets to compete in the main rounds, now this requires you to know each other very well, and trust in each others abilities, it'll make you rely on your tactics rather than your guts' she said.

'She's right, the last round we had people going in, not knowing specifically if we can do it or not, she made a call here, and everyone else needs to answer'.

'Alright, Erza, you're the team leader of Team A' she said as she looked at her.

'I won't let you down' she replied.

'Right then, Cole, I can trust you on this' she added as she looked at him, surprising him and everyone else.

'Me? But..' he replied.

'Yes, I know you've got it in you' she replied.

'Hey, if the Master believes in you, then so do I' said Laxus as he kept his hand on his shoulder.

'Alright, I'll do it' replied Cole.

After a bit of chit chat, the members headed of to sleep. While the members were sleeping, Ursa woke up and walked towards the kitchen to fetch herself a glass of water. As she drank it, she looked out of the window and stared at the moon.

'Beautiful..' she whispered as she kept the glass on the table and looked at the window again, to see a man standing right outside. Ursa didn't scream but panicked all of the sudden. She quickly aimed her charged palm at the windows, only to see a man in a black robe and a mask climb a building and run away.

'Who was that?' she thought as she kept looking outside.

'Must be my imagination.. I better get some sleep' she mumbled as she turned of the lights and went to sleep.

'Ladies and gentlemen! Hello and welcome to Day 2 of the Grand Magic Games!, I'm your host Chapati Lola and alongside me is the lovely Mr. Yajima and we'll be serving as your commentators throughout the games. Today we have the lovely Mirajaine Strauss as our guest commentator!' said the announcer, after which the crowd cheered louder.

'Hello everyone, it's a pleasure to be here!' she said with a smile.

'Woah.. Mira is the commentator today?' asked Cole.

'Yeah, they hire a few guests everyday, guess they picked her' replied Ursa.

'Resuming what we had earlier started, Team Sabertooth being first with 20 points, seems to be dominating the competition with an iron fist!' said the announcer.

'Indeed, 20 points in the first day is an impressive start' replied Yajima.

'But let's not forget, it was only the first day of the competition, things can turn around pretty fast' said Mira.

'Indeed, let's see if our contestants have got what it takes to bring their guild to the top spot at the end of the day!' said the announcer right after which a big screen popped out.

 _'Alright, the phrase giving a clue of the next contest will be like, let's see'_

The screen read out 'Race' which lit up everyone's eyes.

'Alright guys, so I guess there's gonna be a race, who wants to volunteer?' asked Cole curiously.

'Don't look at me, I'm not the fastest one around' replied Gajeel.

'This event is not made for me, you should go in Cole' said Ursa.

'Yeah, you're pretty quick yourself' added Laxus.

 _'They want me to step in for this one, guess it's time I introduce myself'._

'Alright, I'm going in!' exclaimed Cole.

'Cole MacGrath from Team Fairy Tail B!' yelled out the announcer.

'I'm gonna ace this race!' said Natsu, soon after which his name got announced.

'Yeeahhh Boys! It's time to get wild!' yelled Baccus from Quatro Cerberus, after which his name got announced.

'Risley Law from Team Mermaid Heel!' said the announcer.

'Mahn, it's time to shine, mahn' said Ichiya as he stepped forward.

'I'll have some fun' said Kurohebi, soon after which his name was announced for Team Raven Tail.

'Yuka Suzuki from Team Lamia scale!' said the announcer, as he revealed the second last participant.

'Well since Cole is a part of this, don't you wanna go in and compete?' asked Sting as he looked at Reaper.

'Alright, I'll give it a shot..' replied Reaper.

'Reaper from Team Sabertooth!' exclaimed the announcer, after which all eight participants were displayed on the big screen.

'So Cole is gonna step in from Team B, this should be interesting' said Master Makarov.

'Let's go Natsu!' yelled Happy as he cheered for him.

'I've got my money on Cole' replied Lily.

'Hey! Natsu is no slouch when it comes to racing!' replied Happy.

'Will you two be quiet? The rules about the event are going to be displayed soon!' The crowd watched as the entire arena turned into a giant car racing track, where suddenly 8 vehicles, given the same color scheme of the specific contestants, were painted.

'What the? Cars?!' yelled out Natsu.

 _'Hold up? Car Racing?'_

'Oh this is gonna be good, salamander won't be able to move an inch' said Gajeel with a smile.

'The big race is plainly simple, the vehicles you will be using will be powered by your magic energy, which is continuously siphoned off by a special belt inside the car. There are 2 laps across the race track filled with twists, turns and a large number of traps. Contestants are allowed to use whatever abilities they would like. Any contestant caught by a trap will be forced to repeat the lap. If a contestant's car runs out of juice, the contestant will get disqualified!' said Mato as he explained the rules of the game.

'A giant go kart game, damn.. When was the last time I actually drove a car' mumbled Cole, soon after which he sat in his blue, lightning themed car. He then put on his seat belt, after which the car powered up.

 _'I can already feel a small amount of power being drained from me'_

He then looked to his right, to see a black-red colored car with red lightning sparks all over it.

'Reaper..' he mumbled, right after which Reaper turned his head and looked at Cole in the eye.

'No way I'm getting in that thing!' yelled Natsu as he refused to get in his car. Erza was furious over choosing Natsu for this round. After a few minutes, Natsu sat in his dragon themed Car and put on his belt. 'I think I'm already getting sick..'

'On your mark!' exclaimed Mato, soon after which Cole turned his attention towards the track.

'Get set!' he added, making Cole keep his leg near the pedal.

'Go!' yelled Mato, after which 7 cars darted off from the start line, while Natsu's car was slowly moving.

'I can't keep this up..' mumbled Natsu as he moved a few meters. As the cars kept their noses on the first place, a sharp turn had appeared.

'Damn it!' yelled Cole, after which he slowed down a bit, making the other cars overtake him.

'What the?' Cole was surprised as they all drifted their way through the turn.

'Guess I gotta step up my game' said Cole as he turned and accelerated towards the other cars. Risley sneaked her way to the first place, soon after which she used her gravity magic on the cars behind her, slowing them drastically.

'Alright, this girl is gonna keep the first place!' she said as she turned around and saw the others.

'Not if I can help it!' said Yuka, using his wave magic to cancel out her attack. Reaper kept his eyes on the road and watched as Ichiya and Baccus competed for 2nd place, with Yuka right behind him. He suddenly slowed down, allowing Kurohebi to overtake him. Reaper gave a grin as he watched all three of them align themselves, after which he fired a helfire rocket at the center, blasting away all three cars from the track, after which Reaper focused his energy and boosted his car, overtaking Riley.

'No way!' said Riley as she watched Reaper pass by her.

'Damn, that was some move, he waited for the perfect moment' said Sting.

'Reaper is unstoppable when he gets going' replied Lector. As Baccus, Ichiya and Kurohebi re spawned, they had to replay the lap. The 3 immediately accelerated and went past Natsu, who was moving very slowly. Yuka looked behind himself to see Cole catching up to him.

'No..' he said as he moved his car around, preventing Cole from overtaking him.

'Oh, he's gonna have it the hard way huh?' mumbled Cole as he shot a rocket, which Yuka dodged. Cole then fired an alpha bolt, which struck Yuka's car, spinning him around.

'Woah!' yelled Cole as he used his graviton blast to move Yuka away.

'That was close..' mumbled Cole.

Reaper was at first place comfortably, with Riley right behind him.

'My gravity magic will stop him!' she said as she increased the gravity around Reaper's car. Reaper felt his car getting slower and slower, he turned around to see Riley focusing at him. Reaper aimed his hand at her, not realizing the car was going on top of a cliff. '

This is gonna hurt' said Reaper, seconds after which the car started going downhill.

'What the?' thought Reaper, soon after which he looked in front of him and immediately got his hands on the steering while. He looked up to see Riley's car flying right above him.

'Here you go kid!' said Reaper as he fired a one handed punch blast, knocking her away from the track.

'Her gravity magic actually saved me' thought Reaper as he was on a plane road again. Cole was driving uphill, and kept going faster and faster, till the edge, where he realized there was a steep drop. Yuka noticed this and slowed down.

 _'Damn it, where are the god damn signs?'_

Cole looked around as his car was flying and was about to hit the ground.

'Gotta make a soft landing!' he yelled as he stood up on top of the car and used his kinetic pulse to slow it down. As the car touched the downhill road, Cole immediately sat down and put on his belt, after which he rushed towards the road.

'Are you kidding me? A 90 degree turn?' thought Reaper as he looked at the dangerous sharp turn.

'One wrong move and I fall into the river' he mumbled as he slowed down and took the turn seriously. Cole saw the same thing and was surprised.

 _'How on earth am I supposed to go past this thing?'_

Cole slowed down and immediately accelerated after turning. Reaper noticed the lap getting over, after which he grinned.

'The final lap huh?' thought Reaper as he further increased his speed.

'Oh no you don't..' replied Cole as he let go of the steering wheel and aimed both of his palms towards the back and used his static thrusters, increasing his speed

'McGrath..' mumbled Reaper as he aimed his palm and fired a scythe bolt at Cole. Cole dodged his attacks and attempted to fire back. Reaper then grinned as he aimed his tripwire rocket right at Cole's tires.

'No..' mumbled Cole as the rockets exploded, sending his car away from the track.

'Stay down!' yelled Reaper as he turned his attention towards the track. Cole re spawned at the start and noticed how Baccus and Ichiya passed through him.

'No.. These guys were..' he said, soon after which Kurohebi and Riley passed by him.

'Behind me..' he added, soon after which he felt hopeless.

'Oh no, Cole has to restart the lap again, and Reaper is almost half way through..' said Happy.

'Come on McGrath..' said Gajeel as he looked intense.'Cole then looked at the screen to see Natsu going downhill during his first lap.

'Wow.. He's not even giving up.. Even though he knows he has no chance..' mumbled Cole, right after which he focused his energy around his arms and used his static thrusters, while accelerating his car. As Cole went faster and faster, a turn had appeared.

'Alright, no getting out of this one!' he exclaimed as he fired an ice rocket at the edge of the road, creating a blockade, after which he drifted his car, making it hit the blockade but keep most of it's momentum.

'Alright! That was impressive!' said Ursa.

'Mahn! You shall have the glorious scent of my perfume!' said Ichiya as he threw a bottle onto Baccus's car. Baccus laughed over it and kept driving.

'I've smelled things wilder than this old man!' he yelled out loud as he increased his speed. Riley looked behind her to see Cole pass by her car in an instant.

'Coming through!' yelled Cole as he stood on top of his car and fired alpha rockets onto everyone. The others moved away to dodge his attacks. Yuka slammed his car onto Cole's, shaking him off, and almost making him fall. The crowd were on the edge of their seats as the cars started going uphill. Cole immediately sat down and used the same technique to increase his car's speed. Upon reaching the edge, Cole kept increasing his speed. As he flew past the steep edge.

'Here goes nothing!' he yelled out loud as he used his static thrusters in an attempt to break the car's fall. He boosted his power and kept going at it, but only managed to break a bit of it's fall, as he landed directly at the plane road. Reaper looked behind to see Cole catching up to him.

'No way, Cole's back?' he though, soon after which he slowed down near the 90 degree turn. Cole went past through him and looked straight at the turn, soon after which he looked behind himself to see Reaper aiming his hand at him.

'No, I won't go down this way!' yelled Cole as he used his lightning tether against the pole of the road and pulled himself along the door, dodging Reaper's rocket and making the turn.

'No way!' yelled Reaper as he kept firing the rockets and making the turn. Cole kept his eyes at the finish line and looked behind himself to see Reaper tailing behind him.

'This is where it ends Cole!' said Reaper as he aimed his scythe bolt at the tires.

 _'Not gonna happen'._

Cole quickly aimed his ice rocket at the road in front of him, creating a ramp made out of ice. As Reaper fired, Cole's car went airborne, dodging Reaper's attack and crossing the finish line.

'Unbelievable! What a spectacular finish, what a comeback by Team Fairy Tail B! It's the man himself! Cole McGrath!'


	11. Chapter 11 : Battle of the Divas

'What an amazing outcome this has been for Fairy Tail, both their teams have managed to rake in some points, all credit going to the man himself, Cole McGrath!' exclaimed the announcer. Cole looked around as he stepped out of his car and witnessed the crowd cheer out loud for him.

 _'Let it all sink in'_

Cole gave a grin as he looked at his team mates and the other guild members smiling over his victory. He then turned around to see Reaper cross the finish finish line, looking right at him.

'Reaper shouldn't have slowed down when he was taking that turn, gave Cole an opportunity to overtake him' said Sting.

'Doesn't matter really, they just won this out of pure luck, it's just 2 points more' said Lector with a tone of confidence. Master Jiemma of Sabertooth wasn't on his best mood after witnessing Reaper's defeat. Reaper got out of his car and looked straight at Jiemma, who gave a fiery stare at him, soon after which Reaper gave a smile.

'Idiot..' thought Reaper right after which he walked away from the arena. Baccus crossed the line, claiming third place, followed by Kurohebi from Raven Tail. Yuka and Ichiya were nosing in for the 5th place, but Yuka managed to cross the line ahead of him. Risley ended up at 7th place, while Natsu was seen rolling down the hill.

'Somebody please get him out of the car..' said Erza in a tone of disappointment.

'Jeez Natsu doesn't look so good' said Happy as Natsu crossed the finish line and stepped out of his car.

'At least Cole managed to come out on top' said Karla as she looked at Cole walking towards his team mates.

'Yeah, but we can't count on him always, we need to step up and make sure each and everyone of us perform' replied Lily.

'That's right, but if you look at the points table, we're not so far behind, both our teams have 10 and 11 points respectively' replied Master Mavis.

'There's still a lot of time left in the tournament, and I'm sure what Cole has done, will inspire others' she added, soon after which everyone else looked at Erza and her team.

'Next time, I'm not gonna sit in a car' said Natsu as he was about to collapse. Wendy held him and began to heal his motion sickness.

'We didn't score a single point out of that round, but..' said Erza, soon after which she looked at Cole, who had just joined his team mates.

'We need to step up our game' she said, while she kept looking at him.

'Well done McGrath!' said Gajeel as he wrapped his hand around Cole's neck.

'Yeah, not too shabby huh!' added Laxus as he patted his back.

'Just glad things kept going on our favor' replied Cole, soon after which he turned his attention towards Ursa, who was staring at Team Sabertooth.

'Something bothering you?' asked Cole in a soft tone as he stood beside her and looked at Reaper.

'No.. Nothing..' she replied with slightest bit of hesitation in her tone.

'I know what you're thinking, why the hell is he here, what does he want? What does he have to do with Sabertooth, trust me, when the time comes , I'll get answers to these questions myself' said Cole in a bold tone. Ursa turned and looked at him, right after which thoughts started pouring into her mind.

'Yeah..' she said, as she stared at the ground.

'It's alright Reaper, nothing wrong in being second' said Frosh in an attempt to cheer him up.

'Don't really care, at the end of the day it's just a stupid game' replied Reaper. 'You got that right, but the master wasn't really happy with what you did there' said Sting.

'The old man's got issues' replied Reaper as he sat on his chair and took a deep breath. After a few seconds, Yukino confronted him and sat near him.

'May I ask you something?' she said in a low tone.

'Sure, go ahead..' replied Reaper as he looked at her.

'You always take Master Jiemma's words for granted, I mean, I've never seen you even worry about what he's gonna do, or even what he's gonna think' she said. Reaper looked at her, and then looked right at Jiemma for a while.

'Lay off of it, and relax, he shouldn't be the one controlling what you do, what's the point of living if you can't walk on your own' he replied. Yukino didn't have an answer to what Reaper said, and kept staring at the ground, when all of the sudden they were interrupted by a giant screen which popped up at the center of the arena.

'Oh, I guess it's time for the battle rounds..' mumbled Reaper as he looked at the screen.

'Let's see which of the 40 competitors get to go head to head in the first round of the day!' yelled the announcer, soon after which, the crowd started cheering out loud.

'Cole! Cole! Cole!' yelled out a significant portion of the crowd.

'Well well, looks like you already have a fanbase over there..' said Laxus.

'I guess you're right, but I already got my chance yesterday, I probably think Gajeel is gonna be the one today' replied Cole.

'Oh hell yeah, can't wait for some action!' exclaimed Gajeel with a smile.

'I just hope it's me, our team hasn't done anything notable yet' thought Erza as she kept staring at the screen.

'Toby Horhorta vs. Kurohebi' read out the giant screen.

'Lamia Scale vs Raven Tail, better than nothing..' said Laxus as he sat down.

'Our team hasn't been doing well, come on Toby, get out there and show them what you can do!' exclaimed Lyon, right after which Toby gave a smile and stepped out into the arena.

'Raventail..' said Reaper as he stood up and looked at the team.

'Don't try anything stupid, we wouldn't want to catch some attention, if you know what I mean' said Alexei as Kurohebi was about to step out.

'You mean Crimson, right?' he said in a confident tone.

'Trust me, once we have succeeded in our plans, we'll take care of him too' replied Alexei, right after which Kurohebi left the team dug out and stepped into the arena. The crowd began to cheer out loud, seconds before the battle was about to commence.

'Let the first battle between Lamia Scale's Toby Horhuta and Raven Tail's Kurohebi begin!' exclaimed the announcer, right after which the two got engaged in the heat of battle.

Toby immediately grows his nails and starts scratching Kurohebi with his nails covered with Paralysis Claw: Mega Jellyfish. Kurohebi dodges all of Toby's attacks effortlessly and then throws himself backwards and disappears from sight. Toby is shocked and sees sand moving, only to be attacked by Sand Rebellion. Max Alors remarks that that is his Magic and Mavis is intrigued by the fact that Kurohebi knows a Magic as rare as Mimic. Toby calls his opponent strong and Kurohebi replies that Toby is also strong. Toby also states that "Kurohebi" is a cool name, but he responds that that isn't his real name. Toby gets angry and starts attacking him again with his nails, screaming that if he wins Kurohebi has to tell him his real name. As Kurohebi dodges the attacks he asks what will happen if he wins and Toby responds that he will tell him his super secret. Kurohebi thinks that Toby's proposal sounds interesting and attacks him, leaving the crowd in awe and Toby defeated.

'Well then, what's this secret of yours?' asked Kurohebi as he watched Toby stand up.

'I.. I've been searching for my lost sock! And I've been searching for it for 3 months!' he replied with tears in his eyes.

' _Seriously? What's that thing around his neck?'_ Cole couldn't help but smile.

'What's that thing on your chest?' asked Kurohebi as he pointed at the sock hanging on Toby's chest. Toby looks at it and couldn't help but scream in joy.

'Thank you soo much! You don't know how much I've been looking for this!' yelled out Toby in joy.

'Give me a break..' said Reaper as he sat down on his chair. Kurohebi took the sock and ripped it apart, seconds before leaving the battlefield, leaving Toby in awe.

'Now that's entertainment' said Reaper as he smiled.

'That wasn't so nice..' mumbled Frosh.

'Nonetheless, that's 10 points for Raven tail!' exclaimed the announcer, right after which a giant screen popped up.

'The second round..' mumbled Erza as she kept looking at the screen.

 _'Right, let's see who's up next'_

Cole and the others kept looking at the screen, eagerly waiting to know who's gonna fight in the next round.

'Mirajaine Strauss from Team Fairy Tail B vs Jenny Realight from Team Blue Pegasus!' exclaimed the announcer, surprising everyone.

'Hold on a second, Mira?' asked Cole curiously.

'They get to choose who fights, since Mira is one of the reserves, I guess they chose her' replied Laxus.

'So it's gonna be Mira huh, this won't end well for Jenny' thought Erza with a smile. The two contestants stepped into the arena, Mira had an adorable smile on her face while Jenny was relaxed.

'You used to be a part of Sorcerer Magazine, big fan Mira, big fan!' she said as she looked at her.

'Well as they say, out with the old and in with the new' added Jenny as she posed and blew a kiss, making the crowd cheer out loud for her. Mira kept smiling, seconds before the gong was struck.

'Interesting to watch Mira fight again, let's see how this battle plays out'.

'Let the second round for Day 2 begin!' exclaimed the announcer, right after which the gong was struck, signaling the start of the showdown. Mira and Jenny immediately transformed into their swimsuits and began posing in front of the crowd. As the crowd began cheering out loud, Cole was surprised over what was going on.

'Seriously... A pose off?' thought Cole as he kept looking at Mira and Jenny. Reaper looked at Mira for a while, then cracked a smile.

'Now we're talking..' mumbled Reaper as he sat down and watched anxiously.

'Come on Mira! Show her what you got!' exclaimed Master Makarov, being over excited about it.

'I don't think I'm comfortable watching this...' mumbled Wendy as she backed off. When all of the sudden,Team Mermaid Heel had arrived in their swimsuits, in the middle of the arena, making the crowd even more excited.

'What the hell?' thought Cole as he looked at them posing, soon after which Sherry and Sherria from Lamia Scale join in on the action. Cole looked around at the women posing in their swimsuits, and couldn't help but grin over the action.

'Damn..' mumbled Cole. Suddenly, Master Mavis began encouraging the other Fairy Tail girls to join in the action, making Lucy, Juvia, Ursa, Lissana, Wendy and Erza enter the arena with their swimsuits on.

'Okay.. Now I've seen everything..' mumbled Cole as he looked at his guild members.

'While this battle has gone too far, the crowd's absolutely loving it! The show must go on!' yelled out the announcer.

'Talk about fan service..' mumbled Reaper in a low tone, soon after which he looked at Rufus, who was staring at the girls.

'That silver haired girl looks as elegant as a water lily floating on an ocean' mumbled Rufus, right after which Reaper turned around, to see Ursa standing over there. Reaper grunted and shot an alpha bolt aimed at his hat, burning it.

'Hey! What was that for!' yelled out Rufus.

'A fly was bugging me' replied Reaper.

'I don't think I like this..' thought Ursa as she looked at herself and gave an awkward smile.

'Just do what she says' replied Lucy as she pointed at Master Mavis, who was having a weird smile on her face.

'Okay..' replied Ursa as she looked at the crowd and felt anxious.

 _'Remember when I said chicks over here are pretty intense, I was sure as hell right about that. Probably should have brought Zeke over here, would have been drooling by now'_

Cole grinned over his last thought, right after which he looked at Erza posing. Cole kept looking at her, soon after which Erza noticed Cole staring at her. She felt a bit nervous and looked away.

'Probably shouldn't distract her..' mumbled Cole as he looked away.

'Now that the swimsuit round is over, it's time for the next theme, Wedding!' yelled out the announcer, soon after which everyone out in the arena changed into a bridal gowns.

 _'Wedding theme?'_

thought Cole as he looked at everyone out there, wearing a silvery white wedding gown. Cole then looked down and noticed he himself was wearing a silver tuxedo all of the sudden.

 _'Okay... Now I'm confused..'_

Cole walked into the arena as he looked around. He noticed how Gray held Juvia from Lyon and Hibiki holding Jenny as his partner. He then bumped into Lucy.

'Oops my bad..' thought Cole as he stood up and helped her stand up.

'That's alright..' replied Lucy, seconds before she was carried away by Leo. Cole looked at her and grinned, right after which he looked at Wendy, who was standing all by herself alone. Cole walked towards her and coughed, catching her attention. Wendy turned around and looked at him.

'Hey.. That tuxedo really suits you' said Wendy with a smile.

'Aren't you a little young to be wearing that?' replied Cole in a soft tone.

'Well yeah, but..' she replied, soon after which Erza tripped and fell on top of her.

'Hey! You two alright?' exclaimed Cole as he helped both of them stand up.

'I'm fine.. Was just..' replied Erza, pausing after seeing Cole in a tuxedo.

'Was just looking for something.. Yeah.. That's it..' she replied with an awkward smile.

'Ookay.. Let me get that for you..' replied Cole as he attempted to dust her off.

'No no it's fine..' replied Erza, as she did it for herself. Cole then bent and dusted off Wendy's gown, making Erza feel embarrassed even more.

'He wasn't talking to me..' she thought as she looked at him.

Ursa looked at herself and smiled as she looked at the crowd, wearing the gown and holding a bouquet of flowers. Suddenly, Eve from Blue Pegagus came towards him and held her hand. Ursa was a bit uncomfortable over this, when suddenly, right after Eve kissed her hand. Ursa covered her fist with lightning and punched him away,knocking him straight towards the wall. Everyone turned and looked at Ursa, who suddenly felt embarrassed and started apologizing.

'Haha, keep it up kid' mumbled Reaper as he looked at her and gave a smile.

'Well Mira, since this battle is becoming interesting, how about we put in a wager?' said Jenny.

'Sounds good to me!' replied Mira.

'The loser will have to pose for Sorcerer's magazine nude, in the front page!' added Jenny, surprising everyone.

'Woah..' exclaimed Happy.

'I accept your challenge!' replied Mira, soon after which the crowd cheered as loud as they could. The other members leave the arena, leaving Jenny and Mira to face off alone. 'Would wanna get that edition for myself' Cole grinned as he looked at the two, who were about to face off. Jenny then smirks and following the last theme, she transforms into her Battle Form. She claims that the battle is her win. Mira then decides to get serious too, and activates Satan Soul: Sitri, stating that they should finish their contest with a clash of strength, much to Jenny's surprise.

'That's Mira's strongest satan's soul, she doesn't stand a chance' said Erza with a smile. Mira then dashes towards Jenny and attacks her. Jenny falls down, defeated in one hit, leaving all the spectators in awe.

'So let me get this straight, she was all talk and no fight?' asked Cole curiously.

'You got that right..' replied Laxus.

'Enjoy posing for this week's magazine honey, I'll be there!' said Mira with her traditional smile, walking away, leaving Jenny crying as she held herself.

 _'Damn that's brutal'_

* * *

Was gone for quite a while (11 days), while this chapter should have been uploaded 6 days ago, I couldn't find the inspiration to keep the fanfic going, and still struggle to do so. I'm not begging for reviews or anything, but it really helps guys, again, even if you're a guest, do take time to spare a few keystrokes on the review tab and let me know what you feel about the fanfic.


	12. Chapter 12 : The Price of Failure

'With that final blow, Mira comes out victorious from the second round of the day! Giving Team Fairy Tail B 10 points!' exclaimed the announcer, right after which the crowd cheered out loud as Mira waved her hand around the crowd with a smile and walked away.

'Looks like Team Fairy Tail B is changing gears already' said Rofus as he looked at the points table.

'They're just getting lucky' replied Sting.

'I wouldn't call that luck though' added Rogue, stirring the air around them in a mist of confusion.

'What makes you say that?' asked Sting curiously.

'Before the games began, I knew Natsu Dragneel and Gajeel Redfox had returned from Tenrou Island' said Rogue with a determined look.

'Given so, those two are still first generation dragon slayers, meaning we have nothing to fear about them, but' he added with slight hesitation.

'It's that man with the silver staff, Cole McGrath, we can't afford to keep our guard down around him' he explained, right after which Reaper tapped his back.

'You all sound like you're worried' interrupted Reaper with a half-smile.

'Hold on, Reaper.. Didn't you mention earlier, about Cole being your twin brother?' asked Sting. Reaper paused for a moment, and then looked at Cole by slightly turning his neck, to see him chatting with his team mates.

'You got that right' replied Reaper as he sat down near everyone.

'Then it's possible, he must be having an equal amount of power Reaper does, if that's so… then..' thought Rogue, right after which his mind began to erupt with flashbacks of a child wounded and houses burning. Rouge held his head as he began to feel uncomfortable around everyone.

'Hey, you alright?' asked Reaper as he patted his back.

'Get your hands off of me!' yelled back Rogue, right after which he ran away.

'Rogue?' yelled Frosh, in deep concern over his actions.

'What's up with him?' asked Sting curiously. Yukino didn't reply and kept looking as Rogue left the scene.

'Now then, ladies and gentlemen, it's time we announce the contenders for the next battle round!' said the announcer, soon after which the crowd cheered loud as a giant screen popped right in front of them.

 _*Alright, let's see who's it gonna be this time, our second team hasn't had a match up until now*_

Cole kept staring at the screen with a determined look, soon after which the names of the two competitors popped up. 'Erza Scarlet vs Baccus Groh!' read out the giant screen.

'It's my turn, finally..' said Erza as she stood up and closed her eyes with determination.

'Erza huh! I guess I'm gonna have a lot of fun!' said Baccus with a smile on his face.

 _*Come on Erza, you can do this*_

Cole looked at her, as she stepped into the arena and halted at one end of the battle ground. '

Erza closed her eyes as she drew out her sword with a confident look. Baccus could only smile as he placed his bottle on the ground and posed, seconds before the gong was struck, signalling the start of the battle. Erza opened her eyes soon after which she dashed towards Baccus with great speed. Baccus waited for her to close in, and halted her slash with his bare hands.

 _*This guy is pretty good*_

Cole kept a close eye over the battle as Baccus kept countering Erza's attack.

'He's pretty fast' said Master Mavis as she appeared behind Cole all of the sudden.

'You got that right' replied Cole.

'These two have fought before' mumbled Mira, catching the attention of Cole and Master Mavis.

'So, what happened after they fought?' asked Cole curiously.

'There hasn't been a clear winner from their previous battles.. however' replied Mira, soon after which a sharp sound of a piece of metal snapping into two echoed across the stadium. Erza's eyes widened as her sword shattered right in front of her, Baccus saw this as an opportunity and immediately kicked Erza, sending her flying across the battlefield. Cole turned his attention right towards Erza, who was panting as she held her broken sword.

'The battles they fought, was seven years ago, by that time, Baccus would have definitely grown in experience and strength by now' added Mira, completing her statement. Cole grunted as Baccus waved his hands around the crowd, making them cheer out loud for him.

'Erza..' mumbled Reaper as he watched with a little bit of anticipation.

'I'm not done yet!' yelled Erza as she re-quipped into her lightning empress armor and fired lightning bolts aimed at Baccus. Baccus smiled and moved swiftly across the battlefield, dodging out her attacks and closing in simultaneously. As Baccus approached, before he could strike, Erza swept her staff, forcing Baccus to bend himself, right after which she delivered a swift kick onto his face, leaving him vulnerable.

'Take this!' she yelled as she fired a lightning bolt aimed directly at him, knocking him a couple of meters away.

 _*No way..*_

Cole grinned as a thought pondered into his mind, watching Erza fight.

'Looks like the lovely Erza Scarlet has finally found her rhythm, and it's about time! There's still 15 minutes to this match and it looks like both sides have warmed up!' said the announcer as Baccus stood up. Baccus stood up as he twisted his neck and looked at her with a smile.

'That was pretty good Erza, where did you come up with a trick like that?' asked Baccus as he took the broth he had placed earlier on the ground.

'Lets just say it was a gift from a friend of mine' she replied with a smile as she slightly turned her neck around and looked at Cole.

'Well then, since I'm all warmed up, I guess it's time we step things up a bit!' yelled out Baccus after taking sip of alcohol and swirling his tongue out. 'I couldn't agree more..' replied Erza as she switched to her all attack armor and held her sword right against him. Seconds later, Baccus unleashed a burst onto Erza, attacking her ferociously from all directions. Erza dodged out most of his punches and attempted to strike back, but only missed as Baccus was way too fast for her to hit. Erza couldn't keep up to his attacks and immediately tried to switch to her adamantium armor.

'Not so fast!' yelled out Baccus, as he struck her before she could complete, knocking her away, right after which he followed the attack with a fierce kick. Erza spat out a lot of blood as she was airborne.

'No.. Erza!' yelled out Natsu as he watched Erza fall onto the ground.

'Face it, you've lost this one' said Baccus with a smile, as Erza tried to get up, but couldn't due to her wounds.

'She shouldn't have tried to requip like that, it was too much of a risk and she panicked like that. I'd never would have thought I'd see Erza make a mistake like that' said Gray as he folded his arms.

'Hey! The match ain't over yet! Erza! Get up and beat the crap out of him!' yelled out Natsu, catching her attention.

'Come on Erza! you can do it!' added Lucy.

'Natsu.. Lucy..' whispered Erza as she looked at her team cheering out for her.

'Don't tell me that's all you've got!? Come on Erza! I know you're a lot stronger than that!' yelled out Cole, clenching his fist with lightning, catching her attention, along with the rest of the guild mates.

'Cole..of.. of course.. you're.. right..' mumbled Erza as she stood up and tightened her fist. Baccus gave a smile as he turned around and looked at her.'Erza dusted off her clothes and wiped off the blood on her face.

'This ends now!' she said, as she was about to re-quip into a new armor, only to get interrupted by the gong, signalling the end of the round.

'Incredible! This match has turned out to be a tie, a first for this year's tournament!' exclaimed the announcer. Erza changed back to her normal attire and didn't look to happy.

'That concludes the third round of today's battle rounds, giving both Fairy Tail A and Quatro Cerberus 5 points each' said Mr Yajima, right after which the contestants left the arena.

'See, what did I tell ya? They're getting really lucky, if it wasn't for the timer, Baccus would have had this in the bag' said Sting in a confident tone. 'Your assumptions do make a lot of sense' replied Rufus.

'I already told you guys not to worry about those Fairy Tail losers, I mean come on, our team is definitely the best' added Lector confidently.

'Oh well, you win some you lose some' replied Reaper as he stretched himself out of laziness.

'But our goal is to win, and that's what we're gonna have to do, if we have to keep Master Jiemma happy' replied Yukino.

'I couldn't care less' said Reaper as he cracked his knuckles and looked around.

'Hey, Erza.. don't be so hard on yourself' said Wendy as Erza sat down and looked upset.

'I'd rather not speak of what happened out there' she replied as she looked at her.

'Look on the bright side, we did get 5 points in the end' said Lucy in an attempt to cheer her up.

'Those 5 points could have easily been 10, all because of one mistake I let my guild down' she replied while staring at the ground.

'There's a long way to go in this tournament, so don't lose hope yet' said Gray.

'Yeah, and by the way, what were you gonna re-quip to during the last minute?' asked Natsu curiously.

'It's a secret I'm not willing to disclose, you'll all come to know about it the time comes' she replied with a bold look.

'Do you think she would have won if she had more time?' asked Gajeel.

'Don't know, all I could see was Baccus being pretty comfortable out there, so in a way she got lucky' replied Laxus.

'Either Baccus has grown a lot in strength.. or' said Juvia. 'Or Erza's gotten rusty' added Laxus.

 _*Probably did, she didn't look like she was at her peak out there*_ Cole wondered as he looked at her.

'Ladies and Gentlemen, the time has come for the final matchup for Day 2 of the Grand Magic Games!' said the announcer, soon after which everyone turned their attention towards the giant screen.

'It's gonna be Yukino Agria vs Kagura Mikazuchi!' exclaimed the announcer, right after which the crowd cheered loud, as one of the members of Sabertooth was up next.

'Go break a leg Yukino' said Reaper with a confident smile as he patted her back. Yukino didn't respond and simply walked away from the pavilion, towards the arena.

'Kagura huh, that name does ring a bell' said Reaper, soon after which he seemed a bit surprised, as Kagura stepped into the arena.

'Of course... (Reaper gets a flashback of his fight with Kagura, which he almost lost)'.

'Yukino's got this in the bag! it's gonna be 10 points for us baby!' said Lector confidently.

'Hey, this Yukino looks a lot like you don't you think?' Cole asked as he looked at her and Ursa simultaneously.

'That's because.. she's my cousin..' replied Ursa in a faint tone.

'Your cousin?!' exclaimed Cole, soon after which he remembered Ursa talking about her long ago.

'Yeah, I was so happy to see her, but.. I'm too scared, what if she doesn't recognize me?' said Ursa with tears flowing down her eyes.

'She probably does, you just need to go and talk to her' said Laxus as he kept his hand on her shoulder.

'You really think so?' asked Ursa as she felt uplifted by their words. Soon their conversation was interrupted as the gong was struck.

As the battle starts, Yukino first greets Kagura and says that they should also make a bet like the rest of the battle participants of the second day have done, to which Kagura replies that she has no interest in casual bets. Yukino replies that they should bet something more serious then, and proposes they wager their lives, to which Kagura agrees.

Yukino then starts the battle by using her Celestial Spirit Magic to summon the Paired Fish, Pisces, much to the surprise of Lucy Heartfilia and the likes of Happy. The two fishes rush towards Kagura from two different angles, but Kagura manages to dodge them by jumping. Seeing this, Yukino opens the gate of the Heavenly Scales, Libra, and the audience are shocked to see that she is able to summon two Spirits at once.

'No way?! She can summon two spirits at once? How can she still be standing after using that much power?!' exclaimed Lucy. Yukino then orders Libra to alter the gravity of Kagura by the use of Gravity Change, while Pisces wraps around Kagura and heads for a direct attack. Kagura, however, uses the same Magic to nullify the increase of gravity on her and dodges Pisces attack by jumping again.

'Ain't no way Kagura is gonna lose this one, she taught me all I needed to know about Gravity Magic' said Riley with a confident tone.

'Damn, she's stronger than before' thought Reaper as he kept a keen eye over her moves.

'I shall not spare the life of someone who sides with evil' said Kagura, surprising Yukino as she watched her land.

'What do you mean? I have no idea what you're talking about!' replied Yukino, soon after which she opened the 13th gate. As Kagura grabs the hilt of her sword and charges towards Yukino, Yukino opens the gate of the Snake Charmer, summoning Ophiuchus. Kagura continues her charge -now with Ophiuchus in the way- and prepares to use "The Blade of Resentment", Archenemy, which quickly cuts the giant serpent into four without the need of unsheathing it. With this, she manages to get face to face with Yukino and attacks her with her Style of the Undrawn Long Sword. As Yukino was lying on the ground, Kagura approached her with her sword. Yukino prepared for the worst, but watched as Kagura withdrew her sword, ending the battle.

'That concludes the final match of today's Grand Magic Games!' exclaimed the announcer.

'This match has given Team Mermaid Heel 10 points, while Team Sabertooth has been left out with 0 points. It might as well not be their day today, considering the close finish we had during the big race' added Mr Yajima.

'Well that's it for today folks!' said the announcer, soon after which the points table was displayed on the big screen.

'If you bet your life on something, make sure you work for it, be glad I spared your life' said Kagura as she took her sword and began to walk away. Yukino stood up from the ground and walked away in disappointment.

'Damn, master Jiemma doesn't look so happy right now' said Sting as he looked at him sitting in the crowd. Reaper turned his head and looked at Jiemma. 'I guess we're gonna get one hell of a lecture today' added Lector soon after. Reaper stood up and cracked his knuckles as he looked around.

'It's just a stupid game, come on' added Reaper as he turned around and looked at their faces.

'The master tends to take the reputation of the guild pretty seriously, something you wouldn't understand' replied Rufus.

'What do you mean huh?' asked Reaper with a slightly louder tone.

'All I'm saying is that Yukino has disappointed her guild, it's pretty shameful' replied Rufus, soon after which Reaper lifted him up by his collar and charged his other fist in anger, only to get interrupted by Sting separating them.

'It's how things work Reaper! There is no place for the weak!' replied Rufus as he held his neck. Reaper didn't reply back, and turned around to get a glimpse of Cole talking to his guild members.

'I hope she's alright..' mumbled Ursa as she felt concerned over what had happened to Yukino.

'Don't worry, I'm sure she'll be fine, you win some and lose some, at the end of the day it's just a game don't you think?' replied Cole in order to cheer her up.

'Yeah, you're right..' replied Ursa with a smile.

* * *

Hey everyone, Evil Cole here, it's been two months and I know how painfully long it has been for me to post an update to this series .The thing is, I had been pretty busy with all the applications to different universities (Thankfully I got admitted to one and have started classes). Now that things have turned back to normal (Almost), I decided the fact that it was time for me to resume the series, after a long and unintended break. Although it won't be like last time, that is, me posting a new chapter almost daily, I'll make sure atleast one chapter is posted every Sunday, starting from here you all for your patience~

Also guys, feel free to PM me , asking anything related to this, or just to talk. :)

Kudos~


	13. Chapter 13 : Yukino

As the second day of the Grand Magic Games festival ended, the participants were seen leaving the stadium. As Cole got his sling bag and was about to leave, a voice stopped him on his track.

'Hey! Cole!' yelled out Wendy, soon after which Cole turned around with a smile.

'What's wrong?' asked Cole as he looked at her.

'Nothing, I just thought we could go for a walk' she replied.

'I don't see why not' said Cole, soon after which the two left the stadium. On the opposite side of the two, Sabertooth's guild members were having a group discussion, in the absence of Reaper.

'Master Jiemma has ordered us to be there at the hall by sunset' said Rufus.

'Great, just as if this day couldn't get any worse' replied Sting as he scratched his head.

'Hey, where's Reaper?' asked Frosh.

'Beats me, I guess he's gonna be late again' replied Lector.

'Great, he'll get all of us killed' added Sting soon after.

'This city is really pretty don't you think?' said Wendy as she walked with Cole across the streets of Crocus.

'Yeah, beats anything I've ever seen back in my place' replied Cole with a half smile.

'Really? Why does your world sound so dark and gloomy?' asked Wendy curiously.

'I honestly don't know' replied Cole, soon after which the two stopped by a coffee shop.

'Want some?' asked Cole.

'Yeah, okay!' replied Wendy, soon after which the two sat down. Cole ordered two cups of coffee while Wendy waited.

'Here ya go!' said Cole as he handed over the cup.

'Thanks' replied Wendy as she began to take a sip.

'So, what do you think about the games?' asked Wendy, as Cole took a sip of coffee and looked at her.

'Honestly, It's pretty thrilling to be a part of something this big.. but..' replied Cole.

'The thing is, I still don't know what the hell is Reaper doing here, why is he with Sabertooth of all people?' added Cole. Seconds later, Cole noticed a man about to snatch away an old woman's handbag.

'Hey! Stop right there!' yelled out Cole as he aimed his palm and charged it with lightning. The man wasted no time in snatching away the handbag and sprinted away. Cole fired a couple of pincer bolts, but the man was able to dodge his attacks, when all of the sudden, a red lightning bolt struck his legs, paralyzing them instantaneously.

 _'What the?'_

As the man lied on the ground, Reaper walked towards him and took the handbag, right after which he walked towards the old lady.

'Here ya go..' said Reaper in a low tone.

'Hey, isn't that the wizard from Sabertooth?' said someone out of the crowd that had gathered around.

'Oh my god he's so cool!' yelled out another.

 _'What the hell is he trying to pull?'_

Cole watched as Reaper returned the handbag and was about to leave.

'Just hold on a second!' yelled Cole, catching Reaper's attention.

'Huh..' mumbled Reaper, turning around to see Cole and Wendy standing right behind him.

'Cole..' said Reaper with a smile.

'What are you trying to pull here Reaper?' asked Cole with a slightly loud tone. Reaper grinned as he walked around.

'What am I trying to pull? I really do wonder' replied Reaper.

'Hey! what's the big idea buddy? You can't disrespect him like that!' yelled out someone from the crowd.

 _'Crap, I can't get to him with all these people here'._

'See you later Cole' replied Reaper, soon after which he used his firebird to get onto the rooftop of the closest building around.

'Damn..' mumbled Cole.

'Let's get going, everyone must be waiting for us at the tavern' said Wendy in a tone of concern.

'Yeah, let's go' replied Cole, soon after which the two left the scene.

Reaper jumped across the rooftops swiftly, combining his firebird strike along with his lightning tether. As he reached the highest point of the town, he sat down and looked around.

'You guys are late' said Reaper as he kept staring at the sky.

'I apologize for the inconvenience' replied Jellal, right after which Reaper stood up and turned around to see Jellal, Meredy and Ultear altogether.

'Hey Reaper! How's the guild holding up for you?' asked Meredy curiously.

'I really wouldn't prefer talking about the guild right now' replied Reaper. 'Huh? why not?' she asked again.

'Because it doesn't matter' he replied with a slightly louder tone.

'If I may, we've been moving across town incognito, trying to look for suspicious activity' said Jellal, catching Reaper's attention.

'Suspicious huh?' asked Reaper.

'It's just a theory, but we believe that the games are somehow linked to all of this' added Ultear.

'Well, apart from the Raven Tail guild, I haven't felt anything suspicious around here, yet' replied Reaper.

'I see, thank you for your time' said Jellal.

'I'll let you in when I find something myself' added Reaper, to which the others nodded.

'Okay, I better get going before I'm late for the team meeting, apparently the old man was pissed about what had happened today, so I'll catch up with you guys later' said Reaper soon after which he used his firebird strike to glide away.

As soon as Cole and the others gathered at the guild tavern, Master Mavis had an important announcement to make.

'Gather around everyone' she said, soon after which the others turned their attention towards her.

'Now then, the second day has been a great success for Team B, all credit going to Mira, and of course, Cole' said Master Mavis, right after which Laxus patted Cole's shoulder.

'I hope Team Fairy Tail A has learned a thing or two from Team B, it would be a remarkable feat to see not one but two Fairy Tail teams out there at the top!' added Master Makarov.

'Just you wait! We'll be shooting ourselves to the top no matter what!' yelled Natsu with a fist full of fire.

'You're gonna have to go through us first flame brain' replied Gajeel.

'So what! Come on I ain't scared of you or Laxus or Cole! I'll beat you all up with both arms tied behind my back!' yelled back Natsu.

'Is that so!' said Cole and Laxus altogether, surprising Natsu immediately.

'Hey everyone, Master Jiemma has an important announcement at the hall' said Lector, soon after which Rogue and Sting left their rooms and rushed towards the hall, where everyone had gathered. 'Hey, where's Reaper?' asked Sting as he looked around the hall and couldn't find him.

'You should worry about yourself for now' replied Rogue, soon after which Reaper entered the hall and stood beside him. As Reaper stood, he looked to his sides and couldn't find Yukino.

'Hey guys, where's Yukino?' he asked curiously.

'Right in front of you' replied Rogue, soon after which he saw Yukino standing right next to Master Jiemma.

'To make the skies roar... to make the earth boil... to make the seas silent. That is Sabertooth' said Jiemma, soon after which he ordered Yukino to stand right in front of him.

'You have failed, Sabertooth has no place for individuals like you' he added. Yukino didn't respond and kept staring at the ground.

'What the hell is going on?' thought Reaper as he kept looking.

'Then you'll take it all off' replied Jiemma, ordering Yukino to remove her clothes, in order to reveal her Sabertooth emblem and remove it.

'What the hell? What's wrong with this guy?' mumbled Reaper, soon after which Sting told him to pipe down.

'Yes master' replied Yukino, as she removed her clothes, with tears falling off her eyes.

'No..' mumbled Reaper, as he grunted in anger and stepped out, firing a lightning bolt aimed directly at Jiemma's head, to which Jiemma deflected with his bare hands.

'Reaper.. you dare?' said Jiemma as he stood up. Reaper quickly sprinted towards Yukino and covered her with a robe he pulled out from his sling bag, and stared Jiemma directly at his face.

'What does he think he's doing?' thought Rogue, soon after which Reaper charged his fist. Yukino ran away from the room while Reaper and Jiemma were having a stare down.

'I never really liked you Reaper, maybe it's time for me to show you why I'm the guild master' said Jiemma, soon after which he clenched his fist and wanted to deliver a ferocious punch, only to be stopped by Reaper deflecting it mid air.

'Not this time' replied Reaper as he charged his fist and punched him, knocking him back towards the other guild members.

'What the hell? Reaper is standing up against Master Jiemma' said Rufus, soon after which Jiemma stood up with energy spiking around him.

'I'll obliterate you!' he yelled as he dashed towards Reaper. Reaper gave a half smile as he charged his fist and waited for Jiemma to close in. Both of their fists collided as Reaper dashed in, releasing tremendous amount of energy around the hall, soon after which Jiemma was knocked back, while Reaper was still standing.

'You see, this day had to eventually come' said Reaper as he walked towards him. Jiemma stood up and was sweating as Reaper approached him

. 'Who... what are you?' yelled out Jiemma, soon after which Reaper grinned.

'Let me show you' replied Reaper, soon after which he spread out his arms, making a huge aura of red lightning around him.

'This power..' said Sting as he looked at Reaper in awe.

'Grrrhhh Damn you!' yelled Jiemma as he sprinted towards Reaper, aiming to punch him, only to get knocked back by Reaper's punch blast.

As Jiemma lied on the ground, Reaper approached him, aiming directly at his face.

'Go to hell' said Reaper, seconds before he was about to fire a skull bolt, only to be interrupted by Minerva, who immediately held his hand, stopping his attack.

'What do you think you're doing?' she yelled out.

'Out of the way Minerva, it'll be better for all of us once I put this old man to sleep' replied Reaper.

'This old man is my father!' she added, surprising Reaper. Reaper kept aim, soon after which he held back, and took a deep breath.

'Fine, if anyone needs me, I'll be in my room by midnight, gonna go for a walk' he said as he was about to leave.

'Oh, and one more thing' he said, soon after which he charged his fist and punched Jiemma, knocking him out cold.

'I hope you're satisfied now' said Minerva.

'You bet' replied Reaper, while walking away.

'Now I know, why he isn't scared of Master Jiemma, or anyone else around here' said Sting, as he began to shiver.

'All this time he was holding back' added Rogue.

'But.. he's still our friend... why're you guys so afraid?' asked Frosh curiously.

'No Frosh! He's not our friend! He's a monster!' yelled out Rogue, catching the attention of the other guild members.

'Now that day 2 is over, we have to keep going. Team A, I hope all of you are ready' said Master Mavis soon after which the team members yelled out.

'Alright! I'm counting on all of you!' exclaimed Master Mavis soon after. As the guild members were having dinner, Cole looked around and couldn't see Erza anywhere.

'Hey, where do you think Erza walked off to?' asked Cole, being seated with Wendy and Lucy.

'Beats me, she didn't tell anything before leaving' replied Lucy.

'I'm guessing she might be still upset about today's loss' added Wendy.

'Probably, I'm gonna go and see if I can find her' said Cole as he stood up. Seconds before Cole could leave the tavern, the door had been opened from the other side. It was Yukino.

'What is she doing here?' mumbled Gray.

'I'm looking for Lucy Heartfelia' she said as she entered.

'Yukino..' said Ursa as she stood right in front of her.

'It's me.. your cousin.. Ursa, don't you remember?' said Ursa.

'What? those two are cousins?!' yelled out Natsu.

'Come to think of it, those two do look a lot similar' replied Gray.

'Ursa..Yes, I remember..' replied Yukino, soon after which Ursa hugged her with tears rolling down her cheeks.

 _'She did remember'_

'I'm sorry Ursa, but I need to talk to Lucy Heartfelia immediately!' said Yukino as she let go of Ursa.

'What's wrong?' asked Lucy as she walked towards her. Yukino took out her two celestial keys and wanted Lucy to use them from here on. Lucy was surprised as to why Yukino would make such a bold decision.

'Look, as much as I would love to have all the 12 zodiac keys for myself, I can't just simply take it from you' replied Lucy.

'You don't understand.. the thing is, I was disbanded from my guild' replied Yukino, surprising everyone.

'Disbanded?'

'Just like that?' asked Cole as he walked towards her.

'I was humiliated and insulted, before they threw me out' she added with tears flowing down her eyes.

'Those jerks..' grunted Natsu.

'Wait hold on, what's that in your hand?' asked Lucy curiously.

'What.. this?' asked Yukino as she held onto the blue robe.

'Yeah.. I'm pretty sure I've seen that emblem somewhere before' added Lucy as she took it from her.

'I know, it's from Jellal and that cross dressing chick.. uhh.. Ultimate Milk Sandwitch.. right?' replied Natsu.

'Crime Sorciere..' said Gray.

'Who gave this to you?' further asked Lucy curiously.

'When I was being disbanded, Reaper interrupted and covered me with this robe, while standing up against Master Jiemma' replied Yukino.

'Hold on, Reaper gave this to you?!' exclaimed Lucy.

'Not only that, he stood up against your Guild Master?' asked Gray.

 _'Damn it, Reaper would have massacred the guild by now.. But wait hold on.. why would he cover her with that robe in the first place?'_

'So you're implying that out of all your friends out there, he was the only one who challenged your Guild Master? Just because you were being humiliated?' asked Cole.

'I haven't thought too deeply about that.. I don't know.. I never had friends.. or people who stood up for me' replied Yukino, after which Ursa immediately held her hand.

'I better get going, also, I'll be needing to return that' said Yukino as she took the robe from Lucy.

 _'Reaper, what on Earth is going on inside your head?'_

'I'm so confused' said Lucy as she sat down.

'You're not the only one, how did Reaper get that robe in the first place is what's bothering me right now' replied Gray.

'We shouldn't worry about these right now, let's keep our main focus on winning the tournament, Ivan and Reaper can wait' replied Master Makarov.

Cole had stepped out of the tavern and had gone to look for Erza. As he approached a park, he overheard sounds of swords slashing through wood. Cole entered the park to see Erza panting, with her Heaven's wheel armor on.

'Practicing?' asked Cole, surprising Erza and making her turn around with her sword pointed at his face.

'It's just you..' she said as she lowered her weapon and took a deep breath. Cole gave a smile as he created an ice block onto which he sat and created another one for Erza to sit onto.

'I don't have time for chit chat, I need to train at least 2 hours more' replied Erza as she quickly re-quipped into her black wing armor.

'You know, of all the people I got to fight, I never really had a chance to fight you' said Cole as he stood up and charged his body with lightning.

'You want to fight me?' asked Erza as she looked at him, being surprised by his offer.

'I know Natsu will be pissed, but yeah, I challenge you Titania, for a fight!' said Cole as he held his amp with one hand. Erza grinned upon looking at Cole's confidence.

'I'm surprised you remember my title, Demon of Empire City' she replied as she quickly re-quipped into her Lightning empress armor.

* * *

Kinda weird that this fanfic crossed Reaborn's total no. of views and we're not even half way there yet. No love for Reaper huh? XD

~EvilCole


	14. Chapter 14 : Confrontation

Cole charged his body as Erza reverted back to her normal armor.

'That won't save you from this' said Cole as he shot a barrage of lightning bolts aimed at her. Erza stood still and immediately deflected his bolts by her sword with grace.

'So that's how she's gonna play' Cole grinned and shot two magnum bolts instantaneously.

'Let's see you dodge this' said Cole soon after which he slammed his fists on the ground. Erza held her sword close to herself and slashed it against the bolt, pressing herself against the attack.

'Gotcha!' yelled Cole, soon after which spikes of ice erupted underneath Erza. With almost no time to respond, Erza tried to jump away in order to escape. The spikes managed to scratch off her leg as she was airborne. Cole quickly used his ice jump to catch up to her and as he approached an unsuspecting Erza, he swung his amp ferociously. Erza was surprised and quickly drew out her sword to block his attack.

'You won't win that easily!' yelled Erza as she reequipped into her black wing armor and kicked Cole away. Cole landed on the ground with his feet, while Erza stood on top of one of the ice spikes Cole had made.

 _'Fighting her head on isn't the best idea, especially when she has a big ass sword.. but..'_

'Alright Erza! you want me? Come and get me!' yelled Cole as he dropped his amp and drew out gigawatt blades from his hands. Cole used his frost dash to charge onto Erza, who was surprised by the speed Cole had immediately attempted to slash his blade, only to be blocked by Erza's sword.

'Is that the best you can do McGrath?!' exclaimed Erza as she deflected his attack and immediately punched him away, followed by immediately changing into her flame empress armor and firing a fireball at him.

'Oh I'm just getting started!' said Cole as he recovered in mid air and used his frost shield to deflect Erza's attack, creating a huge mist which engulfed the battle arena.

'Hold on Yukino, before you leave, if I may ask a few questions that have been bothering me' said Gray as he spotted her outside, near the street markets. Yukino paused and turned around to see Gray and Lucy walking towards her.

'Would you mind if I see that cloak for a sec?' asked Gray.

'Okay..' replied Yukino as she handed over the Dark blue robe. Gray looked at it carefully once again as he kept staring at the emblem embedded on it.

'Why would Reaper have Crime Sorciere's cloak? It doesn't make any sense' said Gray as he examined the cloak Yukino handed over to him. 'You think he killed them?' asked Natsu curiously.

'It is a possibility, but why would he keep their cloak, I mean he wouldn't be keeping it if he knew who they were' added Gray.

'Hey.. Yukino, mind telling us how exactly Reaper ended up joining your guild?' asked Gray curiously. Yukino stared at the ground, seconds after which she looked up and spoke.

'A year ago, Minerva, our Guild Master's daughter, had told Master Jiemma that a powerful wizard was willing to join us. I don't know how and when Minerva met him, but what I do know, is that Jiemma never liked Reaper because of his attitude. He was always disrespectful to his commands' she said.

'Disrespectful?' questioned Gray further.

'He would often skip team meetings, often stay out late at the night, and would always be by himself' replied Yukino.

'It's hard to believe he'd get along with someone anyways' bumped in Natsu.

'Alright, thank's for your time!' replied Gray as he handed over the robe. Yukino grinned and walked away, leaving Natsu, Lucy and Gray out in the streets.

Cole and Erza exchanged blows over the friendly match they were engaged on, right after which Cole's amp and Erza's sword had collided. Both Cole and Erza grinned as both of them tried to overcome one another. Cole tried to gain the advantage, but failed as his actions gave Erza the opening she needed to knock away his Amp. Cole watched as his amp flew away and anchored itself onto the ground. Erza grinned as she was about to finish him off.

'Not tonight..'

Cole smiled back and charged his hands, and used a graviton blast, distorting Erza's balance, he then punched her, knocking her away onto the ground. Erza tried to get up, and then stopped as she saw Cole's amp pointing straight at her face.

'You win McGrath' said Erza as she smiled, while lying on the ground.

'Almost got me there' replied Cole as he extended his hand. Erza grabbed his hand and stood up.

'You know.. we should train more often' replied Erza as she looked at him.

'Aheh, that would certainly piss off Natsu even more don't you think?' replied Cole with a smile.

'HEY!' yelled out a voice familiar to both of them. Cole and Erza turned to their right to see Natsu, Gray and Lucy walking towards them.

'COLE! I THOUGHT YOU WERE MY BEST FRIEND! YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO BE FIGHTING ME! NOT HER!' yelled out Natsu as loud as he can.

'Natsu! Calm down you idiot!' exclaimed Lucy.

'I WON'T CALM DOWN! NOT UNTIL HE FIGHTS M...' replied Natsu before he was knocked out by Erza.

'That's enough..' she said as she struck Natsu behind his head.

'Damn.. didn't know Erza could shut him up with one blow'

'Let's leave, Cole.. I owe you a drink tonight' said Erza with a smile.

'Sure thing' replied Cole as he carried Natsu on his back. As they walked across the street, Natsu opened his eyes to see him being on Cole's back.

'Hey.. if I'm not walking.. and I'm still moving.. then that means..' he mumbled soon after which he started feeling sick.

'Awgh man you gotta be kidding me! Motion sickness?' exclaimed Cole as he let go of him. 'That's Natsu for you' added Lucy.

Meanwhile, as Reaper moved across the streets, incognito, he stopped and immediately climbed on top of a building, as he sensed someone familiar to him nearby.

'It's him alright' mumbled Reaper soon as he looked below and watched as Cole and his friends walked across the streets. Cole suddenly paused and looked up, right towards the direction of Reaper, making Reaper keep his head down.

'What's he doing here?'

'What's wrong?' asked Lucy curiously.

'I don't know.. but I kinda get the feeling that we're being watched' replied Cole soon as he turned his attention towards Lucy.

'Watched?' asked Erza as she looked up.

'You guys ho ahead, I'll catch up with you later' added Cole, surprising everyone around him.

'But where are you going?' asked Natsu as he stood up.

'I have to buy something.. I just remembered' replied Cole. The guild members weren't satisfied by Cole's answer, but agreed to leave without him. As soon as they left, Cole quickly used his ice jump to get on top of the same building Reaper had been standing on.

'Been a long time, McGrath' said Reaper in a demonic voice, staring at the full moon which had been illuminating the night sky. Cole, who was just standing behind him, a couple of meters away grunted as he kept looking at Reaper.

'What are you doing here, how the hell are you alive? I thought I finished you off that day' said Cole as he charged his fist. Reaper smiled and turned around, with his demonic crimson eyes glowing brighter than the lanterns lit across the streets.

'So did I, Cole' replied Reaper.

'I've done this before, and i'll do it once again. I'll finish you off, right here.. right now!' yelled Cole as he aimed his fist right at Reaper. As Cole began charging his body, he felt weaker and weaker, making him fall on his knees as he tried to gather more power.

 _'Damn it, that fight with Erza sure as hell drained a lot from me, but I shouldn't back off from here, not while he's standing right in front of me'._

Reaper closed his eyes with a grin, soon after which Cole charged straight towards him with his frost dash. As Cole closed in, Reaper immediately opened his eyes and stopped Cole's fist mid air. He then slammed his fist against Cole's torso, knocking him against the building's terrace wall. Cole held his body and tried to stand up, only to be put down by Reaper, who put his feet against Cole's body, preventing him from getting up.

'Oh how long I waited for this moment' said Reaper as he charged his fist and aimed at Cole's face. He then shot a skull bolt close to Cole's face, not intending to kill him.

'I can't kill you' said Reaper as he let him go. Cole stood up and dusted his clothes off, while drawing out his amp in anger.

'Why did you let me go?' askes Cole while charging his amp.

'There's a storm coming.. and..' replied Reaper, before getting interrupted by a blast of Fire covering his entire body.

'Are you alright?' yelled Natsu as he helped Cole stand out. Reaper emerged out of the flames with a grin on his face.

'Natsu Dragneel' said Reaper as he stared deep into Natsu's eyes.

'You think you can hurt my friends and get away with it?' questioned Natsu as he stood up along with Cole.

'Natsu.. you don't need to..' whispered Cole as he tried to stand up.. but fell on his knees.

'Damn it.. I feel like.. I..' said Cole as he fell onto the ground and went unconscious.

'Hmph, looks like it's just you and me.. Natsu' said Reaper with a smile. Natsu turned around to see Cole knocked out Cold.

'Hang in there pal' said Natsu as he covered his fists in flames. 'I won't ever let you..' grunted Natsu as he charged his body,

'GET AWAY WITH THIS!' he yelled, releasing a burst of flame around him, soon after which lightning began to sorround him.

'Lightning?' thought Reaper as he observed Natsu charge his body.

'Lightning Fire Dragon mode!' yelled Natsu as he charged his body and dashed towards Reaper.

'Fire dragon : Wing attack!' yelled Natsu as he attempted to punch Reaper, creating a smoke which covered the entire rooftop. After a few seconds, Natsu rubbed his eyes to see no one standing in front of him. Reaper had left the scene, leaving Natsu and Cole the only ones at the rooftop. Natsu grunted and held Cole on his back, soon after which he took him to the guild hall.

Natsu immediately headed for the Tavern with Cole, who was knocked out cold, on his back, when suddenly, Cole woke up and immediately had fallen off Natsu's back.

'W..what happened? Where's Reaper?' asked Cole as he panicked and tried to stand up.

'I'm glad your alright Cole, Reaper managed to escape, you're lucky I managed to be there on time' replied Natsu.

'How did you know I was in danger' asked Cole as he tried to stand up. Natsu immediately rushed to his aid and helped him stand.

'I knew something was wrong when you said you have to go, then so, I knew for sure someone was watching us, I could smell him' replied Natsu. Cole flashes back to the moment he almost died.

 _'Why didn't he kill me? what happened back there?'_

'I'm.. fine.. let's get going..' replied Cole as he tried to walk.

'Here pal' replied Natsu as he assisted him

As the duo arrived at the guild hall, others were anxiously waiting for the two, as it had been quite late.

'What took you two so long?' asked Gajeel as Natsu and Cole stepped in.

'Cole? are you alright?' asked Wendy as she stepped towards him.

'I'm fine.. nothing to worry about' replied Cole as he sat down on a chair nearby.

'He was attacked' replied Natsu.

'But by whom?' asked Erza.

'Reaper' replied Natsu while looking at Cole, as Wendy began healing his wounds. The hall went into silence upon hearing Natsu's words.

'I won't let that guy get away with this' added Natsu with anger. Erza held her sword and stared at Cole. 'Count me in' she said with a serious look on her face.

'Reaper huh?' said Laxus as he tapped Cole's back.

 _'I don't know, he could have finished me off right there, but it's something he said.. (Cole remembers Reaper's words before Natsu had interrupted) 'There's a storm coming' A storm'_

'I'll handle him myself' said Cole as he stood up. Everyone else looked at him as he stretched his arms. Ursa listened to all of this from a distance and kept thinking about what had happened.

'Why would Reaper do this...' she mumbled as tears began falling off her cheeks. She then looked at her hand and charged her fist with lighting, which immediately turned red.

'Reaper..' she whispered as she stood up and walked towards her room.

Reaper walked across the streets all by himself, soon after which he noticed himself being watched.

'Who's there? Reveal yourself!' yelled out Reaper, soon after which someone with a black robe began to run away.

'Stop!' yelled Reaper as he used his firebird strike to close into the suspect. After a long chase, Reaper shot an alpha bolt aimed at the legs, right after which he used his firebird strike to close in.

'You know, for a kid you do run pretty fast!' yelled Reaper after which he looked at the suspect and was completely shocked.

'What the!?' exclaimed Reaper, being completely shocked over what he saw.

As the guilds prepped themselves for Day 3, a hurdle had struck Team Fairy Tail B, as one of their prime members, Cole McGrath, had been injured. Who knows what Reaper has in mind, with Day 3 on the cards, will Cole and his friends turn out triumphant?


	15. Chapter 15 : Old Foes

Reaper walked across the streets just after he had encountered a mysterious child.

'Damn, what was that all about?' he thought to himself as he sat down and gazed into the night sky.

'That reminds me, I shouldn't just walk around like this' he said as he put on his mask and robe. He then walked towards a mirror placed outside a closed shop as he wore his robe. He looked at his own reflection, as the mask reflected the rays of the full moon, along with his red eyes contrasting the darkness of the night. As he walked across the streets with his robe on, a beacon popped up out of nowhere, grabbing his attention.

'Now what on earth would that be?' he thought as he climbed on top of a building and noticed how the beacon emerged from Crocus's castle.

'That doesn't seem right' he said as he used his firebird strike to travel across the buildings. As Reaper leaped across the buildings, the intensity of the beacon grew, soon after which it disappeared.

'Still think I should go and have a look' mumbled Reaper as he neared the castle.

As Reaper stood in front of the Castle's main entrance, he immediately heard footsteps closing in.

'Come out with your hands up!' yelled one of the guards, alerting the others and drawing attention.

'I don't want any trouble, just wanted to know what that beacon was all about' replied Reaper as he raised his arms.

'Stand down guards' exclaimed A man walking towards Reaper, wearing a suit of armor, having a smile on his face.

'You must be Crimson' he said as he patted his shoulder.

'Oh I remember you, you're..' replied Reaper, only to be interrupted by him completing his sentence.

'Arcadios, Chief of the Cherry Blossom Holy Knight Squadron in the Royal Kingdom of Fiore' replied Arcadios.

'Well that's some fancy title huh?' replied Reaper, in a low tone.

'That doesn't matter for now, tell me, what brings you here?' he asked curiously.

'Well for starters there was this beacon that caught my attention while I was walking around the streets. The beacon had seemed to come from here, from what I saw' replied Reaper.

'A beacon you say?' replied Arcadios, after which a voice interrupted the conversation between the two.

'Arcadios, is everything alright?' asked Princess Hisui as she stepped out.

'I assure you everything is fine and is under control' replied Arcadios. Hisui gave a stare at Reaper, who was wearing a mask.

'You're... Crimson!' she exclaimed as she walked towards him.

'An honor to be remembered your highness' replied Reaper as he waved his arm.

'What brings you here?' she asked curiously.

'Crimson had reported that a beacon had emerged from the top of this castle, it indeed sparks trouble' replied Arcadios. 'It might be something dangerous, we should go and investigate immediately' replied Hisui.

'We'll investigate it alright, but now's not the time. I'll keep the guards on high alert if it really bothers you' replied Arcadios. 'What?! why not investigate now?' questioned Hisui.

'The only witness we've got here is Crimson himself, I don't want to risk using half of my men to investigate something which couldn't have possibly happened' replied Arcadios with a justified tone.

'Are you trying to say I'm lying? or are you saying I'm crazy?' asked Reaper as he stared at Arcadios.

'Neither.. all I'm saying is..' replied Arcadios soon after which an explosion rocked the area.

A beacon emerged from the rooftop, similar to what Reaper had seen earlier.

'You believe me now?' said Reaper soon after which Arcadios signaled the soldiers to a formation.

'Princess Hisui, stay behind me! I'll handle this!' he yelled out soon after which the guards held Hisui.

'Let me go! I want to help to!' she exclaimed as she attempted to free herself.

'It's too dangerous for you' said Crimson in a calm tone, soon after which he went forward straight into the castle, followed by Arcadios. Hisui struggled, but managed to break herself free and rushed towards the two. As the guards chased Hisui in an attempt to stop her, the gates closed soon as she entered, leaving them behind.

'What's going on?' asked Reaper as he looked around and witness himself being imprisoned inside the castle along with Arcadios and Princess Hisui.

'I am not sure, it sounds like an intruder' replied Arcadios as he drew out his sword.

'An intruder huh?' replied Reaper as he narrowed his eyelids and charged his fist. Suddenly, Reaper punched in mid-air, leaving the other two clueless onto what he was trying to do. 'Lucky shot!' yelled out a voice familiar to him.

'Huh? Is that...?' said Reaper as he tried to recognize the person he had attacked.

'I don't need any formalities for you.. R..' he replied, soon after which Reaper interrupted him by punching onto his torso, knocking him against the wall, and breaking his invisibility.

'I see, so you're as strong as before' replied the mysterious man as he stood in front of the three. He wore a black robe and had dark purple eyes which complimented his black hair, similar to Midnight in appearence.

'What's going on? You know this guy!?' questioned Hisui.

'Can't say I don't' replied Reaper, as he grunted and charged his fist.

'Look if you two want to settle your scores it's fine, but please, don't involve Princess Hisui in all of this.' said Arcadios soon after which the man smiled as he raised his arm.

'Oh it has a lot to do with her' he replied as he fired an energy orb aimed at Arcadios in an attempt to kill him. Reaper deflected the orb with his hands, causing it to collide with the wall, creating an explosion. The man raised his hand once again as he was about to fire another, Reaper quickly fired an alpha bolt onto his head to stun him, soon after which he charged straight towards him with his fists covered with Red lightning. As the man recovered, he was greeted with punches followed by a punch blast, which knocked him against the wall. Reaper walked towards the man as he was about to get up and aimed his fist right at his face. The man smiled as his body disappeared.

'Huh.. same old tricks' said Reaper as he turned around and saw Arcadios pinned to the ground along with a man holding a knife against Hisui's throat. Reaper was surprised as he saw Arcadios along with Hisui being held hostage.

'Now now, one wrong step, and you'll be framed for their murder' said the Man as he held the knife closer to Hisui's throat.

'You sick.. bastard..' said Arcadios as he tried to get up, only to be pinned down by him again.

 _*What do I do now..*_

Reaper raised his arms and knelt on the ground.

'That's right..' said the man as he created a clone of himself and attacked Reaper, kicking him around.

'No.. let him go!' yelled out Hisui soon after which the man covered her mouth.

'Shut up, or I'll make sure you don't get to talk again' he said.

As Reaper got tossed around, Arcadios tried to get up once again, forcing the man to keep his foot down on him again.

'One more move like that and I'll make sure she see's the stars' he said. As Reaper fell on the ground, with the man's clone coming in for more. He placed his fist on the ground and sparked lightning on the floor, Shocking everyone standing, forcing the man to let go of Hisui and Arcadios, right after which he was punched at the face by Reaper.

As the man stood up, he dissipated. 'What's going on? Who was that guy? What does he have to do with me?' asked Hisui as she was confused.

'More importantly, how does he know you?' further asked Arcadios as he gave a blank look at Reapper. Reaper didn't respond for a few seconds, after which he broke the silence.

'I'll explain everything later, but right now, you're all in danger' replied Reaper, seconds after which an army of the man's clones appeared into the hall.

'Time to die' yelled out every single one of them, as they created energy orbs and fired straight at them. Reaper quickly slammed his fist onto the ground, creating a pillar of lightning with blocked their attack, right after which the clone army charged straight towards them. Reaper used his punch blast to knock a dozen of clones away, causing them to turn to dust.

'They're mere illusions!' said Arcadios as he drew out his sword and slashed one of the clones.

'Yeah, but their attacks do hurt' replied Reaper as he punched another and fired a rocket to take out a bunch of them. As the two continued to fight of the clones, which seemed never ending. Arcadios slashed through a bunch with his sword, as he stood in front of Reaper.

'Listen carefully, you have to find and defeat him, fighting off this army will wear you off' said Arcadios as he kept fighting.

'But Arcadios..' interrupted Princess Hisui.

'Take Princess Hisui with you as well' he added, surprising her.

'Alright, I'll end this quick, but, you sure you can handle it?' asked Reaper as he was about to leave.

'You don't need to worry about me Crimson, I'm not the chief of the army for nothing' he replied.

'Now go!' he ordered as he cleared a path for the two with his sword.

'Let's go princess' said Reaper soon after which Hisui nodded and agreed to follow him. The two left the hall, right after which Arcadios held his sword and fought off the clone army.

'Why is he attacking us? I'm so confused. Crimson if you won't tell me I'm not going any further! I demand to know who's invading us!' yelled Hisui as she halted while the two were sprinting across the halls of the castle.

'I don't have time to talk, Arcadios won't be able to handle those clones all by himself, and time's running out' replied Reaper. Hisui didn't respond, and nodded her face.

'Come on, we gotta find him and fast' said Reaper, right after which the man appeared out of nowhere.

'Oh, but you already did' said the man with a smile as he began walking towards the two. Reaper grinned as he walked straight towards him.

'I guess you haven't learned yet' he said as he charged lightning around his body.

'Oh it won't be like that, never again' replied the man as he fired an energy orb aimed at Reaper, who jumped to dodge it. The orb went on and hit Hisui, knocking her away.

'No!' yelled Reaper soon after which the man caught hold of his arm and punched him at his face, knocking him to the ground, right after which he fired a pulse of dark energy at him. As Hisui recovered, she saw Reaper stand after the attack, facing the man with his mask cracked.

'Crimson.. are.. you alright?' she asked as she stood up.

'Crimson? haha... ahahahahah!' laughed the man right after which, Reaper took off the mask and stared at him ferociously.

'So you've been hiding your true self from these people to gain their trust? how pathetic!' he said as he smiled.

'True.. self? Wh.. what's going on? Crimson?' she said as she felt confused, after which Reaper turned around, revealing his true identity.

'You.. you're that mage from Sabertooth.. Reaper!' she exclaimed as she felt a loss of words.

'Is that the only thing you know about him sweetheart? How about you tell her what kind of person you are?' he added, making Reaper clench his fists in anger.

'Wh.. what do you mean?' she asked.

'That's enough!' yelled out Reaper as he fired a skull bolt aimed at the man's face. The man was quick enough to dodge his attack.

'Oh? having a short fuse I suppose?' he said soon after which Reaper kept firing a barrage of skull bolts in anger.

'I will destroy you!' yelled Reaper in anger as he charged his body and dashed towards him. Hisui watched safely from a distance as the two engaged themselves in a fierce battle.

* * *

Just before the 3rd day of the Grand Magic Games could commence, Reaper found himself in trouble as he attempted to investigate an unusual activity around the castle. Who is this mysterious man Reaper has had fought before? What is his goal? Will Reaper manage to save Princess Hisui? All these questions seem to be popping in your minds at the moment and that's understandable.

Buhbye

EvilCole~


	16. Chapter 16 : The Hunt (Part 1)

'Chew on this!' yelled Reaper as he fired a hellfire rocket directly at the man, who attempted to dodge it but failed. His eyes glowed fiercely as he fired a barrage of skull bolts at the man, who desperately tried to escape. Upon getting shot at his legs, the man fell onto the ground and turned around to see Reaper walking straight towards him with his fist charged up.

'No.. Reaper don't do it!' yelled Hisui, seconds before Reaper was about to shoot him.

'It's not over yet Reaper, I will be back!' yelled the man as he stood up, right after which Reaper shot a bolt at his legs.

'Call off your clones' ordered Reaper. Arcadios, who was in the other room fighting off the clones, breathed a sigh of relief as the clones disappeared.

'Princess? are you alright?' exclaimed the guards as the banged the doors of the hall .

'I better get going princess, I'll catch up with you later' said Reaper as he opened a window.

'Wait!' exclaimed Hisui. Reaper just waived his hand and leapt, making Hisui sprint towards the window and look outside, to see Reaper use his lightning tether to travel across the buildings. 'Reaper..' she mumbled right after which the guards entered.

'Princess, are you alright?' asked Arcadios along with the guards that barged into the room.

'I'm fine.. thanks to Re.. Crimson' she replied.

'Well well, I shouldn't have known it was you.. Nightshade' said Arcadios as he looked at the unconscious man.

'You know who he is?' she asked curiously.

'As a matter of fact I do, he's one of the most wanted criminals in Crocus, if not.. Fiore.' replied Arcadios right after which the guards held Nightshade.

'The penalty of attacking the palace is execution' he added.

'No' said Hisui.

'Princess?' asked Arcadios with a slight hesitant tone.

'Lock him in the dungeon' she said as she started to walk away.

'But..' interrupted Arcadios.

'That's an order, Arcadios' replied Hisui as she turned around.

'As you wish' he replied.

'Ladies and Gentlemen, it's time for Day 3 of the Grand Magic Games! My word, this year has seen some serious competition, let's see how the score board adds up shall we?' said the announcer, right after which the scoreboard of the teams popped up, indicating each and everyone's points scored

Sabertooth : 38

Raven Tail : 38

Fairy Tail B: 29

Blue Pegasus : 19

Fairy Tail A :15

Mermaid Heel :14

Lamia Scale : 13

Quatro Cerberus :13

'Sabertooth have been dominating throughout, and who would have thought that Team Raven tail would be giving them a tough fight, both of these teams are with 38 points!' he added. 'And ofcourse, with Team Fairy Tail B sealing the 3rd spot, they sure have turned things around' he said. 'Most of the credits however can go to one man himself, Cole McGrath!' he said, right after which the crowd began chanting his name.

'Getting a hang of this crowd?' asked Laxus as he stood beside Cole.

'Heh, haven't got anything like this back at my place' replied Cole with a smirk on his face.

'Well you definitely cannot count any team out of this contest, as there are 3 more days of excitement to come!' he announced, right after which a giant screen popped up.

 _'Alright, let's see what today's game is gonna be about'_ Cole and the others stared at the screen patiently, right after which a word popped up. **'HUNT'** read out the screen.

'So it's either gonna be a pray and predator game, or more likely a scavenger hunt' said Laxus as he looked at the screen.

'You're right' replied Cole. _' Laxus and Gajeel both are dragon slayers, their sense of smell could be the key factor in this one, but that's what they'll expect us, this game isn't gonna be about instinct, it's gonna be about how you plan out your moves'_ Cole kept thinking, right after which he turned his attention to Ursa.

'You think you can handle it?' asked Cole.

'I...I'll do my best' replied Ursa.

'Ursa DeVitt from Team Fairy Tail B!'.

'I'll go' said Erza, speaking out for her team.

'No way! It clearly says hunt, and I'm a Dragon Slayer!' yelled out Natsu.

'Pipe down, I'm going into this round and that's final!' replied Erza, staring at him.

'Yes ma'am' replied Natsu in a low tone.

'Erza Scarlet from Team Fairy Tail A.

'This kitty never fails in a hunt!' said Millianna.

'Millianna from Team Mermaid Heel. '

I'll handle this one' said Jura as he stepped out.

'Jura from team Lamia Scale.

'The girl is involved in this one, keep a low profile' said Alexei, after which Obra was called out for Team Raven Tail.

'It's my time to shine' said Hibiki, right after which the crowd cheered loud for him. 'Hibiki for Team Blue Pegasus.

'If it's a hunt they want, it's a hunt they'll get, it's time for the best dragon slayer to slay' said Sting, right after which his name was announced for Team Sabertooth.

As the contestants stepped into the ring, Mato appeared at the center with a bag.

'Alright everyone, the rules of this game are simple' he said, right after which he opened a bag and let go of a bird. 'This is a bird, not found commonly around here' he said, soon after which he snapped his finger and made a clone out of the bird. 'I bet you can't tell the difference between these two huh. Likewise..' he added, right after which he let go of a crab, a rabbit, a cat and a firefly'

'Damn what are those animals all about?' asked Lector as he looked curiously.

'I think this game is gonna be a lot more than just hunting' replied Rogue.

'So these are the creatures you'll be looking to hunt, but wait, it doesn't end here. There will be 1 real animal among 100 fakes. You'll have to capture the animal and put it in a basket placed at the point of where you start. Capture the wrong one and you'll lose points!. Each animal has it's own points. The crab gets 10 points, while the rabbit and cat both give 25 points each. The bird gives a total of 50 points and lastly, you'll get 100 points from the firefly!' said Mato, as he briefed the instructions.'Also, each animal has it's own guardian, which will prevent you from putting it into the basket'. he finished, right after which he snapped his fingers and a large arena with 5 different paths opened up. 'Now then, each team will have 15 minutes to gather as much points as they can!' exclaimed Mato, surprising everyone.

 _'Just 15 minutes? So you're kind of stuck up with which animal you'd go for'_

'Alright, the first team to contest will be decided based on a fan poll, however, the highest scorer can chose which team can get the head start' said Mato, right after which Sting interrupted.

'It has got to be me, let's go!' he yelled out, right after which the crowd began cheering out loud for him.

'Well he's all pumped up' said Frosh.

'Of course he'd be, he's been waiting a long time to go out there' replied Lector.

'Should have reminded him not to get cocky' interrupted Reaper.

'What do you mean?' asked Lector curiously.

'You'll see' replied Reaper as he looked at Ursa and gave a smile.

'Alright, I'm going in!' yelled out Sting, soon after which 5 baskets of the animals appeared. A timer started right after Sting rushed towards path 5.

'So he's going straight for the fireflies' said Laxus.

'What the?!' exclaimed Sting, soon as he entered into a giant grassland with hundreds of fireflies moving around. Sting tried to smell out the real one but failed. 'My senses, they're not working' he said, right after which he caught hold of a fly out of frustration.

'Ooo.. that's a bad start for Sabertooth, it's going to be -5' said the announcer.

'What? Minus 5!?' exclaimed Sting.

'High risk high reward' said Cole as he folded his arms and watched.

'Something tells me you knew us dragon slayers won't be able to use our sense of smell' mumbled Gajeel as he stood beside him.

'Probably getting a hang of this game, let's just hope Ursa does her best in this one' replied Cole.

'I see, so taking path 5 is pretty much suicidal, unless you know what you're doing' said Master Mavis with a keen eye over the game.

'Damn it, I have 10 minutes left' said Sting out of frustration as he sprinted around the field in a failed attempt to find the real firefly. He grabbed another one, which turned out to be a clone, resulting in another deduction of points. 'Things aren't going so smooth for Sabertooth folks, that's -10 for Sting, and he has got 10 minutes left into this competition, he better start raking up some points sooner or later' said the announcer. Sting punched the ground in anger and sprinted out.

'He's leaving?' said Lector as he looked surprised.

'I got to get some points, and fast!' said Sting as he desperately entered into path 1.

'So he's aiming for the crab now, easy 10 points I guess' said Gray as he watched.

Sting entered into a coastal area where he saw hundreds of crabs walking across the shoreline.'Come on, how hard can this be?' he mumbled as he looked around, and then spotted an unusual looking crab. 'Must be' he said as he went and grabbed it, soon after which all the other clones disappeared. 'I did it!' he said, right after which the earth began to shake, as a giant crab emerged from the sands.

'Must be the guardian' said Cole.

'I get it now, it definitely is a high risk- high reward kind of situation' said Laxus.

'But it's no big deal, the others can learn by looking at the mistakes Sting made right?' asked Gajeel.

' You're right, but I'm pretty sure there might be something going on down there, something we don't know' replied Cole, right after which he looked at the contestants.

'They're all looking at the giant screen' he said, right after which he too looked at it. Sting dodged the attacks of the guardian, and used his white dragon roar to knock him away. 'Just two minutes left for Sting' said the announcer. 'Crap, gotta get this in the bag quick!' he exclaimed as he sprinted towards the exit, with the guardian regaining consciousness. He immediately placed the crab onto the basket, right after which path 1 faded away. 'Times up for Sting and Team Sabertooth, they've managed to score 0 points!' said the announcer.

'Sting can't lose, I'm sure the others will probably go below -50 or something, right guys?' said Lector.

'I just hope we don't turn out to be at the last' replied Frosh.

'It's alright, you win some, you lose some' replied Reaper. 'Unlike you, we have to deal with our Guildmaster Jiemma as always' said Lector.

'Huh, took care of that bastard the last time, so you shouldn't be worried about him' replied Reaper.

'The thing is, he's still our Guildmaster, and we have to obey him' replied Frosh.

'I'm not sure that's what Guildmasters are for' replied Reaper.

'Next up, we have Obra for Team Raventail' said the announcer soon after which Obra stepped up and looked around the 5 different paths. He started walking towards path 1, right after which the timer started.

 _'So I guess these guys have thought about the risk of taking the firefly at first, you don't wanna lose time up front, so better start with whatever points you can collect up front.. but'_

As soon as Obra stepped into the path, the landscape had changed from what it was before, this time it was a desert full of crabs.

 _'I knew it wouldn't be this easy, they probably change the guardian as well'_.

Obra waited patiently as he sat and looked around, while time passed by. After a brief 10 minutes, he finally got up and picked a crab, after which all the clones disappeared, soon after which the ground began to shake, as something started approaching in fast. It was the same giant crab from before.

'Guess I was wrong about the guardian being changed' mumbled Cole, soon after which the crab attacked with it's claw. Obra jumped and dodged all the attacks, soon after which he sprinted towards the exit, dodging all the incoming attacks.

Obra placed the crab into the basket, right after which the path disappeared.

'I guess he wasn't even trying' thought Laxus as he looked at Obra walk away with a couple of minutes left.

'Raventail are probably happy with the 10 points they've scored in this round, nonetheless, it was a good performance by Obra, making Raventail ahead of Sabertooth by 10 points' said the announcer, after which the crowd cheered out loud for them.

'Our next contestant will be Millianna from Team Mermaid Heel!' said the announcer after which she stepped into the arena and posed, making the crowd cheer out loud for her.

 _'Interestingly, this girl looks like a cat, won't be surprised if she goes onto path 3 though'_.

As she stepped onto the arena, she sprinted right towards path 3, soon as the timer started.

'Millianna is headed straight towards path 3, she's the first contestant to enter that path!' said the announcer, soon after which Millianna stepped into a city, where cats were running across the streets.

'Awwwweee those kitties! I just wanna play with them all!' she said as she ran towards a cat and caught it.

'That's -2 for Team Mermaid Heel' said the announcer as the cat disappeared from Millianna's hands.

'Urgh, Millianna has no focus' said Kagura as she watched.

'Okay okay, I got to focus, I need to find the real one, and I know how to do it' she said, soon after which she got on top of a building and closed her eyes.

'What is she even doing?' said Lector.

'Beats me, maybe she's gonna sit around and sense out the real one, like the last guy did' replied Sting.

'That's why there's a time limit, can't just afford to score one animal' said Reaper.

'10 minutes left for Millianna to score some crucial points for her team, will she succeed?!' exclaimed the announcer, right after which Millianna opened her eyes and stood up.

'I got you!' she yelled as she jumped across the rooftops and jumped into an alley, where a cat was resting on a dumpster bin.

'Come here you kitty, come to momma' she said as she took the cat in her arms. All the other cats disappeared, soon after which a giant cat with 2 heads appeared.

'So this is the cat guardian' said Cole.

'Oh poor kitty' said Millianna as she attempted to talk to the guardian, only to be attacked by the giant's paw.

'Opps, guess you don't like belly rubs' she said, soon after which she started running towards the exit. The guardian chased her and jumped, standing in between Millanna and the exit.

'5 minutes left, and this looks like trouble' said the announcer, right after which Millianna jumped, and rolled her body, avoiding the guardian's attacks. As she landed on the other side, she quickly ran towards the basket and placed the cat onto it.

'That's 25 points for Team Mermaid Heel, they still have 3 minutes to go, can Millianna score another 10 points for her team!?' exclaimed the announcer, right after which Millianna got pumped and ran towards path 1. As she entered into a shoreline, she got confused over seeing hundreds of crabs walking around. 'It's not worth it' she mumbled as she walked away.

'I guess that ends the round for Team Mermaid Heel, they stand at the top with 23 points!' said the announcer, after which the crowd cheered out loud.

 _'The time limit is pretty much the key factor here, there's now way you can get more than two animals in one turn, most would go for the crab the second time, considering the amount of time left'_ Cole looked at Ursa as she observed the contest. _'Ursa, what would you be thinking right now'._ Cole looked at Erza, who was preparing herself to go into the arena.

 _'Good luck Erza'_

* * *

 _A long break, and what seemed to have died out was brought back to life yet again. Yes, I decided to get rid of my old formatting and from now on the rest chapters will come up this way. So now any sentence under italics are Cole's thoughts. Also, thank you for your support_


	17. Chapter 17 : The Hunt (Part 2)

' _Good luck Erza'_ Cole thought as he watched her step into the arena

'So Erza's up next, was thinking how long would it take before things got interesting' mumbled Reaper.

'It's her, and that weird kid from the other team, they both have a chance at this. Having 2 teams from the same guild isn't really fair' said Lector

'They're both weak' interrupted Rogue

'Weak, huh, Sting got his ass handed over in this round and you're calling them weak?' said Reaper as he looked at Rogue with a vague smile

'Who's side are you on?' asked Sting as he stood up. Reaper just ignored and closed his eyes as the timer for Erza's round was about to go off.

'The time starts now!' yelled the announcer right after which Erza sprinted towards the 4th path.

' _She's going for the birds, she can automatically come out on top if she manages to pull one out'_ Cole folded his arms and watched as Erza stepped into a large grassland with a giant tree

'Alright, there must be that bird around here somewhere' she said as she quickly re-quipped into her black wing armor.

'She's gonna fly around and search for one?' thought Natsu

Erza used her magic to call out a shield in her left arm and then struck her shield with her weilded sword, resulting in a loud clap, following which birds started to emerge from the base of the tree.

'Bingo!' said Erza right after which she looked at the sky to see hundreds of birds flying around.

' _One of them has to be the real thing, if she makes a mistake here it'll cost her valuable points. The firefly cost Sting 5, these should cost more or less the same.. Hold on.. What is she doing?'_ wondered Cole as he leaned towards the balcony to get a better view.

Erza kept looking around and out of desperation attempted to catch hold of one, which then disappeared.

'That's -4 for Team Fairy Tail A' .

'Damn, she's not gonna get anywhere with those many birds' said Gray as he watched Erza struggle.

'10 minutes left!' said the announcer, right after which Erza sat on the ground.

'At this rate I'll run out of time. I have to think fast' Erza thought as she took a deep breath, right after which she took off her earrings and placed them on the ground.

'What on earth is she doing?' asked Sting .

'You certainly do have a plan in mind' thought Reaper as he watched with a keen eye

Erza then placed her ear rings against the sunlight, making it sparkle, and stepped away.

The Ear rings kept sparkling bright enough for a bird to come and grab it.

'There!' yelled Erza as she flew towards it and grabbed it, making all of the other birds disappear.

' _That's Erza for you'_ grinned Cole as he lifted his arm. 'Comeon! You got this Erza!' he yelled, surprising everyone else around him

'Haven't seen you get all riled up like that before' asked Gajeel

'Well what can I say' replied Cole, only to get interrupted by Laxus tapping his back

'You do know we're on a different team and Ursa is still out there' he said.

'Ohh.. Yeah.. My bad' replied Cole with a bit of embarrassment.

'5 minutes to go!' yelled out the announcer as Erza was flying towards the exit, when suddenly an attack from above grounded her.

'That's right... I almost forgot about you..' she said as she stood up with the bird in her hand, looking towards a Man covered with a black cloth having wings.

'That's the guardian? He doesn't look pretty tough' said Natsu.

'It's not always about how they look' interrupted Gray 'I'm pretty sure this guardian's priority is gonna be stalling Erza till the time runs out' he added.

'Ugh, I'm running out of time!' Erza yelled out as she threw a blade at the guardian, who easily managed to dodge it and flew right towards her.

'So fast!' she said as she blocked an incoming kick from him and kicked back and started sprinting towards the exit.

The guardian stood up and threw a barrage of energy blasts, which Erza kept dodging as she kept sprinting away. Erza immediately re-quiped into her Lightning empress armor and fired a lightning running. The guardian stood still and absorbed the bolt, after which it grew in size.

'What? Did that thing just grow? Or I'm seeing things?' questioned Gajeel in confusion.

'No, it definitely grew in size, that guardian can absorb magic' replied Laxus

'That's it!' thought Erza as she stood still and aimed her staff at the guardian.

'She just stopped. Why'd she do that?' asked Lector out of curiosity

Erza then began firing bolts out of her staff continuously, while the guardian took the bolts head on, constantly growing in size.

'What? Is she trying to lose on purpose now?' said Sting with a smile.

'What are you smiling about?' asked Lector as he looked at Reaper.

'The bigger the guardian gets, the harder it'll be to match up to Erza in terms of speed' said Reaper, surprising everyone.

Erza stopped firing and then reequipped into her black wing armor.

'Catch me if you can!' she said as she dashed towards the exit with a minute left

The guardian, now a lot bigger than before, attempted to stall Erza by firing energy blasts. Erza dodged through them and got out, keeping the bird in the bag and scoring 50 points.

'Incredible! Not only has Erza managed to score 50 points for her team, she also comes out on top of the table, with 44 points!, Team Fairy Tail A has set their sights aimed at the top!' said the announcer, right after which the crowd began cheering loud for her.

'Well done' mumbled Reaper as he looked at Erza walk back to her team.

'So that brings her to the top, now that Erza is done, Ursa is up next. I wonder what she has planned , since Erza already took out the bird, they're gonna change a lot of things. I doubt the same shiny object trick is gonna work with the birds again, it'll be too easy. All we can do is watch' Cole looked as Ursa stepped towards the starting line

'Ursa huh' said Natsu as he kept looking at her

'Interesting to see what she can do, I know she's powerful' added Gray

Meanwhile, where majority of the guild members were seated. A conversation was going on between Guild Master Makarov and Mavis. 'Finally Erza managed to rake up some points' she said as she looked at Erza having a sip of water with her team mates.

'Both of our teams have managed to score pretty decently, now it's a matter of who'll shoot towards the top. I just hope both of our teams do' he replied

Mavis smiled and looked at Cole, who kept his arms on the balcony and looked around

'Yeah, I'm sure they will!' she said with a smile.

Ursa stepped into the arena and stood near the 5 paths. The buzzer went off, soon after which she covered herself with an aura of lightning.

'Woah, what is she even planning to do?' asked Sting as he kept looking at her

'She seems to be powering up, but just near the entrance? Isn't that just a waste of magic?' said Rufus, right after which Ursa bursted onto path 5, taking almost no time to reach the area.

She entered into a swamp, with hundreds of thousands of fireflies moving around in broad daylight.

'It's a lot harder than it was for Sting, I should have known' said Laxus

Ursa kept her cool and sat down. She kept her resolve and focused her energy, till a white aura of lightning began to emit from her.

' _She's focusing her energy.. But on what?'_ Cole looks at the timer which read out **13:21**. _'That quick start did help, but we still don't have time'_

As she gathered more and more energy, Ursa opened her eyes and lifted her arms, right after which thick black clouds began covering the stadium.

'What the hell? Weather manipulation?' said Gajeel as he looked surprised seeing the clouds covering the entire stadium, not letting a partial ray of light into the arena.

As the arena got darker with the convergence of the clouds, the fireflies began illuminating and circled around the area. Ursa had a faint smile on her face as she raised her right began illuminating her right arm with lightning at a frequency, seconds after which, a firefly approached her. She immediately caught hold of it and soon after which all the other fireflies disappeared. The crowd cheered loudly as she raised her arm after catching the firefly.

' _She used the clouds to darken the area and then used her lightning to attract the fly, gotta admit, that was really smart, but now..'_ Cole grinned, right after which the stadium started shaking.

'10 minutes left, and it looks like the guardian is here to stop Ursa from scoring those 100 points' said the announcer.

'That's alright, if I use my dash again, I'll be able to make it out from here without having to fight the guardian' she though, right after which she felt something holding her legs.

'What the?!' she exclaimed as she tried to break free, using her lightning. The guardian then emerged, a giant firefly.

'I have to move fast' she thought, right after which she saw the guardian using it's abdomen to fire a huge energy blast, which she narrowly escaped by rolling over

'Wow, when they said the firefly's worth 100 points, I can see why' said Lector

The guardian then shot out three eggs, which hatched to release hundreds of tiny larvae. 'One bite from these and it can cause paralysis for hours' said the announcer, stretching the last part of his dialogue.

The larvae began swarming towards Ursa, while the guardian prepared to fire another blast. 'Ursa quickly drew out lightning onto her arms and fired at the larvae coming towards her, they in turn began to spread and Ursa couldn't keep up with their increasing numbers.

'Watch out!' yelled Cole from the stands, soon after which Ursa turned around to see a fireball aimed at her. She quickly rolled over and the fireball, barely hitting her, managed to burn off a part of her top, just near the shoulder.

'That was close..' she said as she immediately got up and ran, while turning and repeatedly firing bolts of lightning at the larvae.

She kept sprinting around, right after which she looked at the timer. **4:48 ,** it read out, making her feel nervous.

'If I keep this up, I'm gonna run out of time, I need to figure out a way to get rid of them all at once' she thought as she looked at the guardian charging an attack. She gave a faint smile as she began running around in circles, forcing all the larvae to converge towards her, right after which she began sprinting towards the guardian.

'I really hope this works!' she said as she saw the guardian ready to fire. As the fireball got released, she immediately shot two lightning bolts with both of her hands against the ground to launch herself into the air, dodging the attack and in turn killing off all the larvae behind her. As she was airborne, she drew out a sword of lightning and slashed through the head of the guardian.

She landed on the ground, panting after defeating the guardian. She raised her arm as the crowd began cheering out loud for her.

'All right! Now that's what being a Fairy Tail member is about!' yelled out Natsu in excitement.

'Indeed!' added Erza with a smile on her face

Reaper kept looking with a grin, but his emotions suddenly changed as he noticed something odd

'1 minute and 30 seconds left, she's not done yet folks!' said the announcer, right after which Ursa turned around and began sprinting towards the basket. She held the firefly in her palm and as she approached, she began to slow down.

'What's going on? Why is she so slow all of the sudden?' asked Juvia

'Ursa couldn't move without being in pain, she stood still and started sweating as she had less than a minute left.

'The larvae, it got her..' said Rufus as Ursa fell onto her knees.

'So close, yet so far..' added Lector.

Reaper kept looking at her and felt a bit restless. 'Come on kid..' he whispered as she tried to stand up.

' _Oh no, Come on Ursa!'_ Cole wondered while looking at her struggle.

'30 seconds left!' said the announcer, as Ursa was meters away from the basket.

'Come on Ursa, you can do it!'yelled out Lucy

Ursa then collapsed on the ground, shaking as she couldn't carry herself forward. With 10 seconds remaining, everyone was on the edge of their seats.

Suddenly, a small aura of red lightning began surrounding Ursa, as she started to stand up.

' _What the? Red?'_ Cole looked surprised, right after which the timer went off.

'Ursa DeVitt has been unable to bring the firefly to the basket, hence Team Fairy Tail B ends with 0 points!' said the announcer to the surprise of everyone in the crowd.

'I.. Failed...' she mumbled as she stood motionless and tears rolled down her cheeks.

The crowd cheered for her effort against the challenge but there she was, standing still, emotionless and when all of the sudden, she faints, collapsing on the ground.

'Someone take her to a Doctor!' yelled Cole as he felt agitated and jumped into the arena.

'Wait!' said Erza as she interrupted Cole.

'What are you doing? Why did you stop me?' asked Cole, right after which a group of men carried Ursa away from the field.

'We'll meet with her after today's games, right now it's best if we let her rest, and focus on our games.' replied Erza

'But what about the paralysis? I can help her!' Cole further pleaded.

'They have an antidote for that, believe me, don't worry about her now, she'll be fine, she just needs rest' added Erza soon after.

'I know you're worried about her, believe me, I am too, but she's gonna be alright Cole, you're probably gonna have a sparring match in today's fights, so better stay focused.' she added as she patted his shoulder, comforting him.

Cole looked at Ursa being taken away, he felt a bit uneasy but nodded his head and took a deep breath.

' _Alright, today's game's almost over, and the fight rounds are gonna come in, I wonder who'll be facing whom. Whoever it may be, we'll make sure Ursa's effort today didn't completely go in vain'_ thought Cole as he looked at his team mates, who were looking back at him

* * *

 _ **Back? You know it~**_


	18. Chapter 18 : A Revelation

'Hang in there Ursa' Cole pondered to himself as he wacthed her being taken away.

'Alright! Now it's time for one of the wizard saints! Jura from Team Lamia scale!' said the announcer right after which Jura stepped in.

'So it's him again, he was pretty tough to fight, well let's see what he can do here' Cole folded his arms and watched.

At the Sabertooth dug-out, Reaper kept looking around, right after which he just turned around and started walking away.

'Where are you going? Aren't you gonna watch Jura fight?' asked Frosh curiously

'I'll be back soon, tell me what happened okay?' replied Reaper as he took out his robe and stepped out.

'Hmph, he thinks he's so tough, that watching Jura of all people will be boring for him' commented Sting.

'Well, let's just hope he comes back in time' replied Lector. 'After all, we still have the battle rounds left' he added.

Reaper stepped out of the stadium, turned around to see the sky, with the cheers of the crowd echoing around. He took a deep breath and wore his robe, quickly used his lightning tether to climb on top of a building and looked around. He used his firebird strike to travel fast across the buildings and halted at one place.

'Didn't expect you to come so soon, Reaper' said a voice familiar to him.

'I got your signal, and thought I needed some fresh air' Reaper replied as he took off his hood. 'There's something you guys should know' he added as he turned around and looked at the stadium.

'What is it?' asked Ultear as she stepped in front, along with Jellal and Meredy behind her.

'Yesterday night, after I met Cole, I found someone' he replied, confusing the other three.

'You're gonna have to be more specific' added Jellal.

'I can't be sure who that was, but it was that kid from Fairy Tail, Wendy' Reaper replied.

'What about her? And wasn't she supposed to be with her guild? How come you found her all by herself?' asked Meredy

'I don't know myself, she wore a black robe, she was shivering in fear, and she kept murmuring, about some .. Eclipse' he added.

'What a strange young girl' commented Ultear

'I don't know, she looked pretty different, it's almost as if she had completely changed in an hour' replied Reaper.

'Alright, we'll keep our heads up here Reaper, again thank you for taking your time' replied Jellal, right after which the trio began to disperse

'Watch yourself okay?' said Meredy as she waved her hand and walked away.

Reaper then turned around and looked at the stadium, right after which he noticed royal guards moving in a formation around the stadium.

'What's all the commotion about?' he thought as he kept a look, right after which he noticed a face familiar to him in the same uniform as that of the guards.

'Yu..kino? What's she doing with them?' he thought as he kept observing, right after which he noticed Arcadios greeting the guards.

'I've seen him before, at the Castle, but more importantly, what on Earth is Yukino doing over here?' he thought as he kept looking.

'Alright, from now on, you'll be serving the King of Crocus' said Arcadios right after which he was greeted with salutes. He gave a smile as he walked around, looking at everyone and came across the same row Yukino was in. 'I believe I have the right to have great expectations in all of you!' said Arcadios as he gave a faint look at Yukino, right after which he ordered everyone to head towards the castle.

'What on Earth is going on here' thought Reaper right after which he decided to follow them to the castle

As the troops marched across the soveirignity of Crocus, Reaper kept a watchful eye and moved swiftly across the rooftops, following their every move.

The troops halted at the castle gates, after which a giant door opened and all of them were inside. Reaper was standing behind a tree, where he kept watch.

'Aren't you going to watch the games Sir?' asked one of the guards

'Indeed I am, that's one celestial wizard down, and one more to go' he replied right after he walked away

'I don't know what those two were blabbering about, but I gotta find out why Yukino is here' Reaper mumbled as he climed on top of the tree and prepared to scale on top of the castle wall using his firebird strike

As he used his firebird strike, he quickly entered into a room, leaving behind a trail of smoke, which the guards gave a look, but ignored.

'Now, to find out what's going on' said Reaper as he stood up and was about to move around, seconds before he heard footsteps.

'Crap! I gotta hide fast!' he thought as he looked around and immediately hid behind a curtain

'So you believe this plan will work?' said a voice familiar to him. Reaper moved the curtain just a bit to see the princess Hisui open the door

'You'll see for yourself' replied someone coming in with her.

'There are still 2 more days, till then I'll just have to wait' she replied.

'Who is she talking to?' thought Reaper as he attempted to get a closer.

'For now, I need some time to think, I'll have my guards escort you' replied Hisui as she signalled one of the guards to take the man away.

'I'll be waiting, Princess' he replied, right after which he and the guard walked away.

'2 more days? What on Earth is going on?' thought Reaper as he pondered to himself

'I don't know how this will go, but if our plan is executed right, we might be able to do it. Just need some time' said Hisui as she began taking off her robe.

'Crap.. I shouldn't be seeing this' Reaper gave a smirk and covered his eyes.

Hisui took a heavy breath and opened her hair as she walked across the room half naked and stared at the sky, standing just near the curtains

'I just hope this will be able to change things' she murmured.

'I'm trapped here, damn! how on earth will I get out now' Reaper stood still as he looked at Hisui staring at the sky, not knowing he's standing right next to her

Suddenly, he felt a jerk in his chest, as his body began to flicker around. 'Crap! not now!' he thought as he held himself and began releasing sparks of lightning.

Hisui was surprised to see the curtain illuminating all of the sudden, as she was about to remove it, Reaper tossed a smoke grenade and quickly jumped awat.

' _cough_ _cough_... Who could that have been?' she mumbled as the smoke began to clear off and she looked outside of her window. She noticed a pattern of fire moving away farther from her.

'Crimson... no .. Reaper?' she said in shock as she watched.

'Princess! is everything alright?' yelled out one of the guards as they noticed the smoke.

'Everything is okay, just some miscalculated spell I was practicing' she replied.

'Reaper..' she said as she wore her robe and tied her hair

Reaper immediately stopped as he landed on a rooftop and held his chest, right after which the flickering ended. 'It's only getting worse' he thought as he gathered lightning around his hand. 'So there's gonna be something big 2 days later, and I need to find out what' he said to himself as he looked back at the castle, and then looked at the stadium. 'Better get going!' he yelled as he used his lightning tether to leap around buildings.

As Reaper reached the stadium, he dusted off his robe and went inside. He noticed how the others inside the main hall were staring at him, but it mattered less. He looked up to see a sign pointing towards the nursing office. He nodded his head and went towards the direction pointed by the sign.

'Excuse me sir, who would you like to meet at this time?' asked a nurse attending the office.

'Ursa DeWitt, the one from Fairy Tail' he replied, to which the nurse got a bit surprised

'May I know your name, Sir?' asked the nurse.

'It's Reaper' he replied.

'Your real name?' she asked again.

'...Kessler' he replied, right after which the nurse walked towards a room.

'Miss Ursa? Are you awake?' asked the nurse as she knocked the door.

'Yes, come in!' she replied as she opened her eyes and sat upright on her bed.

'There's someone by the name Kessler here to meet you' said the nurse, to which Ursa was a bit surprised. 'Let him in' she replied after thinking

'Alright Sir, you can go in!' said the nurse, right after which Reaper opened the door and stepped in.

Ursa's eyes lit up as he watched Reaper walk in and sit on a chair next to her bed.

There was a minute of silence, as Reaper took a bottle of water and drank, while Ursa sat still, not knowing what to say.

'So, I saw your match, you feeling good now?' asked Reaper as he kept the bottle of water and smiled. Ursa still remained silent and didn't say a word.

'Listen kid, you win some you lose some, but what matters is you tried your best kay? now don't let that get to you' he added as he gathered lightning around his hands.

'Reaper...' she mumbled as tears rolled down her cheeks

'Huh?' thought Reaper as he looked at her

'That day, after the blast, what happened?' she asked as she wiped off her tears.

'It's a long story kid' he replied.

'I thought you.. died..' she added as she was about to burst in tears

'So did I, but well, here I am!' he replied, spreading his arms.

Ursa wiped her tears and smiled, looking at Reaper. 'So, Sabertooth huh?' she asked out of curiosity.

'That's another long story. So tell me, how's good ol' Cole now?' he asked, dodging her question.

'Cole.. he's alright' she replied, right after which Reaper stood up.

'I better get going now, take care kid' he said as he put on his hood and opened the door.

'Wait!' she yelled out, extending her right arm

'Goodbye Ursa' he said as he closed the door and walked out of the office. He walked to the team area, where on entering he was greeted by Frosch and Lector.

'Where were you Reaper? the game had ended way back and two battles have already been done!' exclaimed Frosh.

'I had to run some errands' replied Reaper

'Errands? Hard to believe someone like you would need to run errands' replied Lector.

'Yeah yeah.. so who won?' asked Reaper.

'You mean the game round? Jura came first, while Erza came second' replied Lector.

'That doesn't matter, i'm itching to go out there and fight!' yelled out Sting

'Who's turn is it supposed to be now?' asked Reaper out of curiosity.

'It's Fairy Tail B vs Raventail' replied Frosch.

Reaper watched as Laxus stepped into the arena. He narrowed his eyelids as he remembered his encounter with him before.

'Oh, him again, I remember that lightning before' mumbled Reaper, right after which he gave a smile.

'This is going to be interesting..' he thought as he leaned against the edge and watched over

'The battle between Team Fairy Tail B's Laxus Drevyar and Team Raventail's Alexei is about to begin!' yelled the announcer, right after which the gong was struck


	19. Chapter 19 : Setting The Stage

Everyone was ready to witness the fight between Fairy Tail and Raventail. After all, it was supposed to be a rivalry between a father and son. Laxus stood at the arena along with Alexei standing just in front of him.

'Laxus is up against Alexei, this is gonna be interesting' said Cole as he waited for the gong to be struck.

'I hope Ivan doesn't use one of his tricks' whispered Makarov

'Don't worry, I'm sure Laxus can handle anything Raventail has to throw' replied Mira

'The battle between Laxus and Alexei... Begins!' *bang* exclaimed the announcer, after which the gong was struck

Alexei charged towards Laxus and started dealing out multiple punches, one after one. Laxus couldn't seem to keep up and kept getting hit. He looked as if he wasn't even trying to avoid his attacks and kept getting beat up.

'What's happening? Why isn't Laxus using his magic?!' asked Cole as he felt concerned

'I don't know, this looks bad, even for his standard' replied Gajeel.

'What's the big deal? Why isn't Laxus doing anything?!' yelled out Natsu as he watched Laxus getting beaten down

'Is he even trying?' asked Lucy.

Reaper kept looking at the fight, watching Laxus getting beaten up. He shook his head and folded his arms as Alexei kept beating him up like a punching bag.

'So, is this the same Laxus you fought before?' asked Rufus

'Can't say for sure' replied Reaper with a low tone

'Well, it must have been a landslide for you then' he said with a smile on his face.

'That guy is getting beaten up pretty bad huh' said Sting as he watched.

'They're all aged, their time was over long back' added Rogue

'What's the matter, are you just gonna stand there and do nothing?' asked Laxus as he stood firm and looked at Alexei.

'As a matter of fact, I've already done plenty!' replied Alexei as he snapped his fingers, and revealed an illusion of himself beating up Laxus.

'What's that? Something to scare me?' asked Laxus with a smile on his face

'Oh now, what you're seeing over here is what everyone else is seeing in the stadium, they're watching an illusion. Incredible isn't it? They're watching you be so helpless my son' replied Alexei, while taking off his mask, revealing himself to be Ivan, Laxus's Father.

'Come on Laxus! You can do it!' yelled out Lucy, under the effects of the illusion.

'So making me look bad will make you win old man?' asked Laxus

'Oh no no, all I ask is you tell me where to find the Lumen Histoire' said Ivan with a wide smile on his face.

'You think I give a crap about your illusions? I don't need to look good if I can beat the real you, and I can't wait' replied Laxus as he tightened his arm and sparks of yellow lightning came out of his body.

'That won't be happening boy!' yelled out Flare, the other member of Raventail as she and all the other members stood beside Ivan

'You know you can't take all of us at once, so I'm just going to ask you again, tell me where is the Lumen Histoire!' said Ivan

'Never heard of it' brushed off Laxus with a smile. 'Also, since all of you are here, I'm gonna have fun taking you down all at once!' replied Laxus with a smile, charging his body

'You dare?!' yelled out Ivan in rage

'Tsch, it's no surprise the old geyser gave up on you' replied Laxus soon after which he charged his body and fired a bolt straight at Ivan, who dodged it and ordered to attack.

Laxus charges his body and attacks all the other four at once, after a fierce fight, he takes down all four of them without taking any damage. As he approached Ivan, Laxus intimidated him by charging his right hand with electricity.

'Laxus, my boy, we're family' said Ivan in an attempt to stop him

'Family? The only family I have is Fairy Tail, you're not in a position to be talking about families' replied Laxus. 'To think the old Geyser actually thought you could change, 7 years wasn't enough for you to turn a new leaf, yet he still left you alone, thinking something good might happen, to his own son' he added.

'Too bad you couldn't give up on your ways, you're pathetic!' exclaimed Laxus as he punched Ivan, sending him flying away, removing the illusion he casted in the stadium.

'What the? Laxus? And are those? All the other members of Raventail?!' exclaimed Cole in surprise _'Oh man! I really thought he was losing there'_

'Ivan?' said Makarov in surprise

'Guess he wasn't playing around after all' said Rufus

Reaper gave a smile as he looked at Laxus standing tall after his victory. 'You can say that again' he replied.

'It would seem that Team Raventail employed cheap tactics to try and win, however, Laxus from Team Fairy Tail B has emerged victorious!' exclaimed the announcer, followed by a loud cheer from the crowd.

Laxus headed back to his teammates, who greeted them with smiles. 'Not a scratch on you, damn!' said Gajeel

As he walked in, Cole was standing with his arms folded giving a smile, to which Laxus closed his eyes and smiled back. 'Not too shabby!' said Cole as he patted his back

'Like you're the one to talk' replied Laxus, as he sat down and drank water

'So, what really happened back there?' asked Cole curiously

'Yeah, for most of it we thought you're getting beaten up, and suddenly you punch him away' added Gajeel.

'It was an illusion by my old man, said he wanted to know something and what not' replied Laxus, wiping his face with a towel

' _An illusion huh, then again he took on all five of them at once, and by the looks of it he didn't even break a sweat, he's tough alright'_ Cole looked at the board as the final contestants were up for the fight.

'Alrightt! It's the final match of the day folks, and it's going to be between Team Blue Pegasus and Team Sabertooth! We have Eve from Blue Pegasus facing off against Rufus from Team Sabertooth!'

'A splendid opportunity I must say!' said Rufus as he walked off.

'Knock yourself out bunny boy' replied Reaper

'It's him again' said Gray, as he grunted and stared at Rufus walking into the arena.

'Go break a leg Eve' said his team mates as he stepped into the Arena, standing in front of Rufus.

'Let the battle commence!' yelled the announcer, soon after which the gong was struck.

Eve starts the fight with White Fury, sending a blizzard to wrap around Rufus. Rufus, however, begins to memorize Eve's attack and easily evades the abilities of Rufus' Magic, Eve quickly rushes towards him, only to be surprised at the sight of Ichiya in a bathtub, whilst drinking wine.

'What the heck ?' exclaimed Eve feeling a bit embarrassed

Rufus, poised for attack, comes behind Eve, preparing for an attack. 'I used my magic to manipulate objects from your memory' he said as he attacked.

Rapidly charging for another spell, Rufus directs it towards his opponent. Eve, however, manages to evade said attack by creating a Snow Clone of himself, shocking the viewers.

'Gotcha!' said Eve as he uses White Fang to locate Rufus' real body, which he succeeds in.

Undaunted by his opponent's actions, Rufus stood still, then casts a Memory-Make spell,

'Memory-Make: Karma of the Burning Land' he said, casting a magic circle, causing multiple pillars of fire to erupt from the ground and burn Eve. Eve then falls, defeated by the Sabertooth member's powerful attack.

'The winner is Rufus Lore from Team Sabertooth!' exclaimed the announcer, followed by a loud cheer from the crowd.

'Not bad' said Reaper, folding his arms

'Those Sabertooth guys are tough' said Wendy

'Nothing to worry about' replied Natsu, 'I just can't wait to beat them up when I get a chance!' he added

The screen had updated the points table of the teams after Day 3;

Sabertooth : 40

Raven Tail : 38

Fairy Tail B: 39

Blue Pegasus : 22

Fairy Tail A : 32

Mermaid Heel :32

Lamia Scale : 28

Quatro Cerberus :13

'Oh hell yeah! We're right there at second place!' yelled out Gajeel in excitement

'Yeah, let's keep going ahead, we're a point close now from that first place' replied Cole

'That's it for today folks, join us tomorrow for Day 4 of the Grand Magic Games!' said the announcer , after which the crowd got up from their seats and started to disperse.

'Those Fairy Tail guys are catching up really fast' said Lector.

'They won't get far' replied Sting. 'We'll show them who's the top guild in Fiore' he added

Reaper just nodded his head and followed his team as they left the stadium.

' _So that ends day 3, with two more days to go, I'm sure we'll be able to stay at the top, I'll make sure I pay back Mavis by helping out as much as I can'_ Cole kept thing as he and his team mates moved towards the exit.

'Ursa is waiting for us at the tavern' said Juvia

'Glad to know she's fine' replied Cole

'Let's head to the tavern and celebrate!' yelled out Natsu as he and the other members joined in

'Hey, Wendy! You were great out there!' said Cole as he greeted her, congratulating her over her fight with Shelia, which ended up as a draw.

'Cole! You're just saying that to cheer me up, I could have won that' she replied, as she felt a bit shy

'Come on, look at the bright side, you did score points' he added as he patted her back

'Indeed, you did well, Wendy' said Erza as she came up in between the two.

'Good to see you too Erza' said Cole as he smiled, to which she smiled back

'So, shall we all head to the Tavern?' announced Erza, after which everyone proceeded towards the exit, except Cole

'Man, for a girl you sure are bossy' said Cole, grinning.

'What's that supposed to mean? Gender has nothing to do with authority' she replied

'Relax, I'm just saying it's the first time I met someone who is, heck even Trish wasn't as bossy as you are' replied Cole, scratching his head.

Erza's eyes widened all of the sudden, she stared at the floor, feeling restless.

'Huh? Is everything alright Erza?' asked Cole curiously

Erza took a deep breath, and relaxed, after which she gave a half smile.

'It's funny, that's the first time you mentioned that name' she said.

'Who? Trish?' asked Cole

'Yeah' she replied

'Oh, I never told you guys before have I? It's a long story actu...' said Cole, getting interrupted by Erza

'Well I have the time to hear it!' she replied with a slightly loud tone' surprising Cole and everyone around them

'I'm sorry I'm sorry' said Erza immediately as she felt embarrassed over her actions.

'Erza, Trish was my girlfriend' said Cole, in a low tone, staring at the ground.

Erza halted, not knowing how to react, she stood still and empathized over him, even though she knew nothing.

'She was?' Erza further asked, while looking at him

'Yeah, she died back in Empire City, and it's all my fault' added Cole as he looked up, a small droplet of tear rolled down his cheek, large enough for Erza to notice

'Cole.. I..' whispered Erza, getting interrupted by a man who fell in front of her. Cole helped him up, right after which he gave a smile back to the man

'Hey, we're running late, we don't want them celebrating without us now do we?' said Cole without a smile.

'I suppose so' replied Erza, giving a half smile , after which the two walked towards the Tavern

Meanwhile, at the rooftops of the city, Reaper stood , keeping one leg on a ledge and having a look at the castle, with the wind blowing his robe

'Two days ...' said Reaper as he wore the hood of his robe


	20. Chapter 20 : For a cause

Cole and Erza walked towards the guild tavern as dusk was about to settle down. Cole opened the door to be greeted by Natsu and Happy.

'What took you guys so long?' asked Natsu as he patted Cole's back

'Erza wanted to buy something at the store, so I had to tag along' replied Cole, scratching his head

'Huh? Since when did Cole become your shopping buddy Erza?' asked Happy

'It's nothing like that, I just wanted to show Cole around' she replied, folding her arms.

'So how about it, did you find something you like?' asked Natsu as he tried opening Cole's bag

'Actually I did, all those jewels I had over here had no use in my world, so I figured I'd get something for everyone' replied Cole as he took his bag and removed a box from it

'Cake!?' yelled out Natsu as he raised his arms in joy.

'Yeah, to you guys!' replied Cole, opening the box to unveil a strawberry cheesecake.

'I'll hand it over to everyone, thank you Cole!' interrupted Mira as she took the cake off his hands and started cutting it.

'I want the piece with cherry on top!' yelled Natsu, interrupted by Gray, who punched him in the head

'No way, I asked for it first' replied Gray

'Well why don't we ask Cole who gets that piece?' yelled out Natsu, after which he pointed at Cole

'Huh? They're arguing over cherry?' 'Uh.. I think...' replied Cole, scratching his chin, only to be interrupted by Erza

'It's obvious, I should get that piece' she said, with narrowed eyelids.

'But that's not fair!' yelled out both Gray and Natsu.

'You have an objection?' asked Erza in an slightly loud tone

'No ma'am!' they replied, being timid over her authority.

'Well that's not very nice' said Cole as he took the slice with cherry on top.

Everyone was shocked as he took the slice and moved around with it.

'I believe this piece should be handed over to me!' he said, giving a smile as he took his fork and was about to eat.

'Nahh just kidding!' he replied as he took the plate and handed it over to Wendy.

'Here kid' he said, as he patted her head.

'Wow, thank you so much!' she replied as she took the cherry and ate it. Erza could only watch with her mouth wide open as Wendy ate it.

'Can't someone go and get more cherries?' asked Lucy.

'Where's the fun in that?' replied Happy, as both of them watched Erza, Natsu and Gray being sad.

As everyone started eating their share of cake, Cole was sitting with Wendy and was having a conversation. Both of them were noticed by Master Makarov, Laxus and Mavis

'So he's getting along pretty well' said Laxus, folding his arms and leaning against the wall

'Yeah, he does' replied Mavis with a smile.

'Can already tell he has a soft spot for Wendy' added Laxus.

'And so does Wendy for Cole' replied Master Makarov, while sipping on a cup of beer

'So that's how I took down 10 armed robbers with one attack' said Cole with a smile, while eating a slice of cake

'Wow, your stories never fail to amaze me Cole!' replied Wendy, with widened eyes.

'I'm glad I get to share them with you' replied Cole as he noticed the bracelet he gave Wendy years ago.

'Hey.. Isn't that..' said Cole

'The bracelet you gave me, 7 years ago' said Wendy, completing his sentence.

'Wow, and not a scratch on it' said Cole, as he noticed how clean the bracelet was.

'I make sure it stays that way' she replied with a smile.

'That reminds me, how's the kid holding up?' asked Laxus as he looked around.

'You mean Ursa? She's alright, she went out to get some milk for my coffee' replied Master Makarov.

'And you had to send her, jeez old man, talk about being inconsiderate' replied Laxus, in a low tone.

'Well she was willing to go out, so It's fine!' replied Master Makarov, in a slightly loud tone.

Meanwhile, at the streets of Crocus, Ursa walked around with a bag full of packets of milk. She came across an alley, where she noticed a group of men gathered around. She felt suspicious and slowly moved towards them to have a look on what's going on.

'Listen kid, hand over the jewels and nobody gets hurt!' said a man out of the group.

'I don't have any!' replied the kid, shocking Ursa, as it was a voice familiar to her.

'Hold it!' she said, as she kept the bag of milk on the ground and posed, narrowing her eyelids, as sparks of white lightning illuminated her fists.

'And what are you gonna do about it missy?' said the man, after which one of the members held his arm.

'We should get out of here!' yelled the other man.

'She's just a little girl!' said the leader as he took out a knife.

'That's no ordinary girl, that's the newest member of Fairy Tail's Thunder Legion!' yelled the goon, as he was about to run away, when suddenly, a strong gust of wind blew away all the men. Ursa quickly held the packet and braced herself, as she stood against the wind. She then looked up to see the kid disappeared.

'Where did she go?' said Ursa as she illuminated the alley by lighting up her hand with electricity. As the girl was nowhere to be found, Ursa picked up her bag and left for the tavern.

'I'm gonna go and get some fresh air' said Cole as he got up with his plate and proceeded towards the kitchen. He kept his plate on the sink and got himself a glass of water. Cole walked out of the kitchen with the glass and headed upstairs, towards the balcony. He took off his bag and amp, walked towards the edge and leaned against the railing.

' _The sky, it's so beautiful here'_ Cole wondered as he gazed at the night sky, illuminated with stars.

 _'Back there it's so polluted, can barely see a thing'_ he kept looking and took a deep breath. He felt a bit surprised as he felt someone pat his back.

'Fresh air huh' said Erza as she stood beside him and looked at the night sky.

'Well, I don't get this kinda view back at my place' replied Cole with a smile.

'Your world sounds so, dull' said Erza as she looked at him, seemingly interested to know more

'It actually is' replied Cole, as he looked down for a while.\

There was an awkward silence in the air, followed by a shooting star in the sky, which both of them noticed.

'A shooting star, you guys make wishes while seeing them too?' asked Erza while looking at him.

'I never believed in wishes' replied Cole

'Well, you're not in your world now, so give it a try' she said, patting his back.

'Heh, alright then', Cole closed his eyes, and made a wish in his mind, after which he opened his eyes to see Erza staring at him

'So, what did you wish for?' asked Erza

'Am I really supposed to tell?' replied Cole

'Come on, spill it' persuaded Erza further.

'I'll tell you once it comes true' replied Cole, for which Erza laughed and stared at the sky

'So Cole..' said Erza, getting his full attention

'Yeah?' asked Cole with a puzzled look

'What happened with Trish?' she asked.

Cole suddenly lost all the enthusiasm he gained, he looked at his arm and then spoke out

'Back at Empire city, when I was an ordinary bike courier, I had a girlfriend. Trish..' he said, while holding the rails

'Everything was fine, we had it all, but after the blast, the one which activated my powers, everything changed' he added. 'Her sister died in the blast, and she blamed me for it' said Cole with his tone getting lower

'Cole.. I' interrupted Erza

'I had to make a choice, to save her or some doctors, I tried to save her, with all my powers I couldn't do a thing. For a second she sprung to life, told me how disappointed she was at me, said God had given me these powers and I was being selfish. Those were her last words' said Cole, after which a teardrop rolled down his cheek

'They called me the Demon of Empire City, I never really knew how it felt to be called that way, until I realized what I've lost. Looking back at the choices I've made, even though people call me the savior of New Marais, I never really forgave myself for what I did back at Empire City.' Cole completed, while wiping off his eyes.

'Cole, you don't have to hate yourself, you can't save everyone... That's something I've learned a long time ago. And regardless of what you did before, what you choose to do next is what should matter now. Sure she might have told those words before dying, but trust me Cole, somewhere in heaven she's looking down on you, being proud of what you've become' replied Erza

'If it makes any difference to you, just remember there are people who still believe in you, over here in Fairy Tail' she added, while giving a smile.

Cole had flashes of Wendy, Natsu, Lucy and all the other members of Fairy Tail giving him a smile. He gave a smile as another teardrop rolled down his cheek

'You guys are the best' he said, as he wiped it off and turned around.

'Thanks Erza' he said as he wore his back and mounted his amp.

'Don't mention it' replied Erza, while giving a mild punch on his shoulder.

Cole and Erza walked into the main hall and noticed how everyone was busy talking.

'Heyyy Cole! Wanna fight?!' yelled out Natsu

'Give it a rest Natsu!' yelled Erza, soon after which the doors of the tavern opened up.

Ursa walked in with the bag of milk packets, getting greeted by Mira. She kept the bag on the counter, and looked around. She breathed a sigh of relief and smiled.

'Hey kid, what's up?' asked Cole as he stood beside her

'Hey, Cole. I'm fine, just a bit tired' she replied as she sat down

'We didn't get to talk after your match' said Cole, after which Ursa was a bit upset.

'I'm sorry I couldn't win' she said as she stared at the ground.

'Hey, don't worry, you tried your best, that's what matters' replied Cole, keeping his hand on her shoulder.

'Besides, our team is already at 2nd place' he added with a smile on his face

Ursa smiled back, after which Mira brought her slice of cake. Erza looked a bit surprised as she saw the slice getting handed over to Ursa

'But but.. You told me it's all over' she said

'Of course I had to, otherwise who'd save a piece for Ursa?' replied Mira, to which both Cole and Mira laughed

After an hour, Cole stepped out for a walk, all by himself. He moved around the streets after twilight faded, noticed how some shops were setting themselves up with bright lights, as a part of the festival. He felt the cold breeze of the night move around his face.

' _Man, it's getting pretty chilly, should I wear my jacket'_ Cole walked around for half an hour, stopping near the park, where he saw a bench. He sat down and took a bottle of water out of his bag and drank.

' _Who or what is that?'_ thought Cole as he looked at something move around between the trees. Cole felt alarmed and stood up, raised his right arm and charged it with lightning. Cole walked towards the trees.

'A girl?' Cole felt surprised and lowered his hand

'Hey, are you lost...' he said,while standing near the girl, wearing a black robe

'Blue hair?' Cole stood and bent, right after which the girl removed the hood of her robe

' **W...Wendy!?**


	21. Chapter 21 : An Unexpected Visitor

'W.. Wendy?!' exclaimed Cole as he looked at Wendy, wearing a black robe with a few scars on her face

'Cole..' she replied, with a sorrowful tone

'What happened to you?' he asked in concern as he held her

'Cole.. I..' she replied, while tears started to fall from her eyes

'Wendy..' said Cole, right after which she hugged him , and began to cry out loud.

' _Did someone hurt her? Was she lost? She was in the tavern a moment ago..'_

'What happened to you?' asked Cole, as he kept his hand on her head

'I never ...thought ...I'd be able... to see you again..' replied Wendy, with her strength decreasing

Cole held her, and felt a lot confused as he noticed her wounded.

'Tell me, what happened to you' he asked gently, as Wendy stopped crying

'There's a lot you should know' she replied, with her eyes closing

Cole noticed something was odd, he then noticed Wendy beginning to cough out loud.

'Wendy, are you alright?' asked Cole as he held her shoulders.

'Cole.. I.. I have..' she replied, after which her eyes closed.

'Wendy.. Wendy.. Stay with me!' persuaded Cole, right after which he laid her on the ground and used his pulse heal in an attempt to wake her up

'Come on..' he grunted, after attempting twice, with no luck.

Cole punched the ground in anger, after which he kept his hand on her palm

' _She's alive.. But.. What's wrong with her..'_ he though, after which an idea struck in his mind. Cole used his radar pulse, and to his surprise, sensed the plague within Wendy's body

'No.. Way..' said Cole, as he stood up and started shaking his head

'The plague.. Here? But it was.. All supposed to end.. Right there!' he said as he clenched his fist in anger

' _I don't have time to lose, I have to get Wendy to the guild, right now!'_ Cole thought as he picked her up and started sprinting towards the tavern. He caught the attention of all the locals who watched him carry an unconscious Wendy across the streets.

'Do you need help?' asked a bystander

'Thanks, but that won't be necessary' replied Cole with a tone of hesitation

After minutes of running, Cole barged in the guild tavern, catching everyone's attention as he walked in with Wendy unconscious

'Cole.. And is that Wendy?!' asked Natsu as Cole placed Wendy on a table

'But.. If that's Wendy, then who is..' added Gray

'Is that me?!' yelled out Wendy as she ran in and had a look.

'Wendy?!' yelled out Cole as he looked at her, watching over the other one

'What's going on here? Why are there two Wendys' asked Lucy.

'I... I don't know, I saw her at the park, she was so scared, and I brought her here after she fell unconscious' replied Cole

Wendy started to use her sky magic in an attempt to heal her

' _The plague..'_ Cole kept thinking about it in his head as he watched Wendy attempting to heal her.

'I.. It's of no use, my sky magic is getting blocked, what's wrong with her?' she said as she looked at her hands

Everyone was surprised over her claim. Cole felt uneasy and suddenly punched the wall in anger

'Cole.. Are you alright?' asked Erza

'It's the plague.. The same one from my world' replied Cole

'The plague?' she further asked

'Yes..' replied Cole, after which he sat down.

'We'll figure out something, in the meantime, someone get Cole a glass of water' ordered Erza, after which Ursa got Cole one.

Cole took a sip of water and then looked at Wendy, standing right next to the injured one.

' _The god damn plague..'_ he thought as he took another sip

'You need some rest Cole, we have a big day tomorrow and..' said Lucy

'This isn't about the games anymore.. Don't you get it, suddenly we have two Wendys, and the plague is back!' replied Cole

'Cole.. Stay calm, like I said, we'll figure out something' said Erza, after which Cole just sighed and stared at the ground

He looked around, as he was a little restless, when suddenly his eyes lit up

'That's it!' he said as he stood up and sprinted towards the exit

'Cole.. Cole!' yelled out Erza in an attempt to stop him

'Let him go' interrupted Master Makarov

'But Master..' she said, as she looked at him

'Right now, the boy might have figured out a way, need I remind this disease is something from his world' he replied

' _Alright.. Where are you'_ Cole stared at the sky as he sat down at a rooftop and focused his energy. Seconds later, he felt a signal. He leaped through the buildings, using his lightning tether combined with Ice jump and frost dash, till a point where he saw the castle.

' _What's he doing over there?'_ he thought as he looked at the big castle of Crocus. Cole used his Radial pulse to detect his location, and noticed him standing in a room.

' _How am I going to get past those guards'_ Cole though, as he counted the number of guards, encircling the castle.

* * *

Reaper stood inside the room , waiting behind the curtain, the same curtain in which he hid before. He had been waiting there for almost half an hour, when suddenly he heard the door opening.

'That will be the agenda for the day' said Princess Hisui, after which the guards bowed and she closed the door.

She sat down in front of the mirror and breathed a sigh of relief, after which she looked at herself.

'Two days..' she said, as she looked at the reflection of the window

'Yeah.. Two days' said Reaper, as he removed the curtain from himself.

'You must be here for a reason' said Hisui, unmoved by Reaper's presence, as she kept looking at him through the mirror

'I mean no harm princess, I just want answers' replied Reaper as he stood with his arms folded.

'I'm willing to talk' she said as she turned around and looked at him

'I already know these games are a huge set up for something' said Reaper, while folding his arms. Princess Hisui felt a bit surprised, but carried on

'So, apart from telling me what's it all about, you need to tell me why you've recruited one of my guild members, Yukino' he asked.

Hisui sighed, as she looked at him then took a deep breath

'If I tell you, you're going to help me, I need someone as powerful as you, just in case something goes wrong' she replied.

'I'm not giving any promises princess' replied Reaper

'The Eclipse project' she said

'We're gathering energy from the magic games, and we use that energy to power the eclipse gate. We will use that gate to travel back in time and stop Zeref, eliminating all evil from this world' she added.

'Time travel.. And to kill.. Zeref?' asked Reaper, after which he suddenly remembered his fight against Zeref before

'Yes, and the reason to recruit Yukino, was to harness the power of the zodiacs.' she further added

'This all sounds a little to sketchy to me, how can you be sure the world will head towards a positive direction if you re-write history?' asked Reaper

'I know I have to try' she replied

Reaper grinned, right after which he walked towards the window.

'Wait.. Reaper!' she yelled out, raising her arm

'You have to help me' she added as Reaper turned around.

'Alright..' he said, after which he used his fire bird strike to move away.

* * *

Cole was hanging on the ledge of the window as watched Reaper fly away.

' _Crap! I can't let him get away!'_ Cole immediately used his lightning tether and hatched onto Reaper.

'What the.. Cole?' thought Reaper as he noticed Cole traveling with him mid air

Reaper stopped near a rooftop, and Cole used his static thrusters to land himself

'Well this better be good' said Reaper, clenching his fist with red lightning

'Hold on' replied Cole, covering his hand with lightning as well.

'What do you want Cole?' asked Reaper as he shot a bolt in anger. Cole leaned to avoid the attack.

'I'm not here for a fight, I just wanted to talk' replied Cole, as he powered down

Reaper felt surprised, after which he powered down as well. The two kept staring at each other for a moment, as a breeze blew in

'Today, I came across Wendy in a park, and guess what, she was infected' said Cole, in a serious tone

'Get her a doctor?' replied Reaper, brushing him off

'But it's no ordinary infection, it's the plague, the same one back at our world' added Cole, which surprised Reaper

'Wendy's got the plague?' he asked for an reaffirmation of what Cole stated earlier

'And another thing, the Wendy I encountered, isn't the same Wendy from our guild, she was badly injured when I found her, and she wore a black robe' said Cole

Reaper remembered his encounter with Wendy before.

'So there are two, and the one you're talking about is infected with the plague' said Reaper

'That's right' asked Cole out of frustration

Reaper had a pause, as he sat down and looked around, at the edge of the rooftop

' _What's his deal? I've never seen him so calm before'_ Cole thought, after which Reaper stood up, and looked at him

'Listen, I know you don't give a crap about this world, or it's people, but I'm just giving you a heads up' said Cole as he felt disappointed and was about to leave

'You must have been so desperate about it, if you had to come and talk to me' replied Reaper, making Cole stop and turn around

'And what makes you think I won't end your life right here?' Reaper asked Cole

'Because, you could have when you had the chance before, and you didn't' replied Cole confidently

Reaper grinned as he gathered lighting, which turned into fire seconds later.

'There's a lot of things going on around here, and like I said, there's a storm coming in' he said, as he started walking towards Cole. As he stood beside him, he kept his hand on his shoulder.

'You knew I had the powers of the beast within me, I'll help you, but just this once Cole' he said, after which Cole closed his eyes

'Thank you' replied Cole, right after which Reaper began to absorb energy off of Cole's body

'Agh.. What.. What do you think you're doing?' yelled Cole in pain, as Reaper kept absorbing his energy, seconds after which he stopped and gathered lightning around his right arm

Cole stood up in anger, as he gathered lightning around his arm and was about to attack.

'Do you want my help or not?' asked Reaper in a bold tone

' _What's his deal? A moment ago he tried killing me, and now he's talking like this'_ Cole just nodded his head as the two headed to the tavern

'Will she be alright?' Wendy wondered


	22. Chapter 22 : Day 4 (Part 1)

'Will she be alright?' asked a concerned Wendy.

'I just hope Cole knows what he's doing' replied Lucy

Cole and Reaper walked across the streets, heading towards the tavern. They got a few stares from the crowd as they were well known mages from their respective guilds. A stray child appeared, asking for an autograph

'Not in the mood kid' said Reaper, after which he walked off. The child felt a little bit upset, and handed over the pen and paper to Cole.

' _Huh, I'm surprised he didn't ask mine first'_ Cole smiled and signed the paper, to which the boy smiled and ran back

Reaper just turned back and looked, he kept staring at Cole as Cole walked towards him

'We're almost there..' said Cole, as he kept walking, to which Reaper nodded and followed him

There was an atmosphere of silence in the tavern, when all of the sudden, everyone's attention was drawn to the door. Cole opened the door and entered, followed by Reaper, wearing a black robe

'Cole, you're back.. And is that.. Reaper?!' said Wendy in shock

Everyone else at the guild hall was surprised over Reaper's presence.

'Let's just get this over with' whispered Reaper as he looked around and saw everyone's face

Erza helt her sword, after which she noticed Cole's signal to stand her ground

'If you think you can enter our guild and hurt my friends you've got another thing coming!' yelled Natsu as he was about to land an attack

Reaper closed his eyes and stood still, as Cole used his graviton blast to hold Natsu down

'Let's all calm down, her life's in danger, and he's probably the only one who can help us' said Cole, pointing at the injured Wendy

Reaper grinned as he looked at Cole, after which he stood forward and used his Radial Pulse on Wendy

'You're right, she does have the plague' said Reaper

'So what are you gonna do?' asked Cole

'You might wanna stand back' said Reaper, after which everyone stood afar from him. Reaper spread his arms, after which fire began circulating around him. Cole got a flashback of the time John used his power to heal someone with the plague.

A few seconds later, Reaper stopped and fell on the ground, after which his body started flickering.

'Crap.. Not again..' he whispered as he got up.

'Are you alright?' asked Cole

'I'm fine.. And so is Wendy' he replied as his body stopped flickering

Cole reassured himself by using his radial pulse, and the plague was gone from Wendy's body

'Let her rest for now, her body needs time to recover' said Reaper as he was heading towards the door.

Cole walked towards him and kept his hand on Reaper's shoulder

'Thanks..' he said

'You can thank me by telling me how she got the plague when she tells you after waking up' replied Reaper

'Tomorrow, by the park, after dusk, alone' he added

Cole nodded, after which Reaper left, and everyone turned their attention towards injured Wendy

'Wendy, just check if you can use your sky magic to heal her' asked Gray

'That's a great idea' replied Wendy, after which she headed towards her and attempted to heal her'

'It's working..' she said, as she healed off her other injuries

' _She still needs rest'_ Cole kept thinking, after which he was called by Master Mavis and Master Makarov

'Now Cole, I know you're riled up about what's going on, we are too.. But there's something you should know' said Master Makarov

'What is it Master' asked Cole curiously

'It's about the games Cole, since today Raventail cheated, their team has been dismissed from the games, so to balance out, we had to merge our teams as one' replied Master Makarov

'Oh, and what about the points?' asked Cole

'Well.. That's what.. We're gonna have the points of the previously lowest scoring team, that's from Team Fairy Tail A

' _What? All that hard work?!'_ Cole's emotions changed all of the sudden

'Since we've merged the two teams, we have to decide the five members of the team as well' said Master Makarov

'Erza, Natsu, Gajeel, Laxus and You' said Mavis, surprising Cole.

'What about Gray, or Mira?' asked Cole

'Oh don't worry,we have Gray and Ursa as substitutions' replied Mavis

' _So now it's really a do or die situation, and with Wendy lying around, I can't really keep my heads up. But, I should remember why I came here in the first place'_

'I won't let you down Mavis' said Cole as he tightened his fist

Hours later, after everyone went to sleep. Cole was awake in his room, and stared at the ceiling. He kept having flashes of the destruction, and chaos caused back in Empire City. He got up from bed and went to wash his face.

' _The plague.. But how'_ he kept thinking, after which he walked to the main hall, where he noticed the injured Wendy, lying on a cot, wrapped with a blanket.

' _I never thought I'd see you again...'_ Cole remembered the exact words off of her mouth

'Everything alright?' interrupted Master Mavis, surprising Cole to an extent he got shrilled and charged his right hand in reflex

'Gah! Oh.. It's just you Mavis..' he said, after he powered down

'You need to sleep Cole' she said as she looked at him

'I know, but it's just.. Thinking about all these things, I really can't' replied Cole

'Besides.. Shouldn't you sleep too?' asked Cole curiously

'I don't need to, I'm a ghost silly!' she said with a smile.

* * *

'Welcome to Day 4 of the Grand Magic Games!' yelled out the announcer, after which the crowd began cheering out.

'It has been a splendid performance from all the teams this year, with many more to come, also, as a major announcement, due to the absence of Team Raventail, Team Fairy Tail as to merge as one, and here is the roster for Team Fairy Tail! Erza, Natsu, Gajeel, Laxus and Cole MacGrath!' exclaimed the announcer, after which the crowd started to cheer out loud for them

'Hey, whatever happened yesterday, keep it aside, let's focus on the games' said Laxus, to which Cole shook his head

'Alright then, let's begin with the first event of the day!' said the announcer, after which everyone's eyes were on the board

'Has anyone of you seen Reaper?' asked Minerva, as she stepped in for Team Sabertooth

'Haven't seen him since yesterday' replied Sting

'What A shame, I was planning to let him go in the event, guess I'll go instead' she said

'So, who do you think should go Cole?' asked Gajeel.

'Anyone from our side huh, we know who's a water wizard' said Cole, as he looked at Juvia

'You're our best bet' he said, as he asked her to go in, to which she agreed

'Hello Reaper, I'm sorry Ultear and Meredy can't make it, it seems they are busy with something, but I'm here' said Jellal, standing at the park, behind Reaper

'That's fine Jellal' replied Reaper, as he turned around

'So, any progress on our investigation?' asked Jellal curiously

'I was right about the games being a set up' replied Reaper, surprising Jellal

'They absorb the energy off of the contestants, and use it to power some time machine' replied Reaper

'A time machine?' he further asked with interest

'Yeah, and they want to use it to travel back to the past, and kill Zeref' replied Reaper, surprising Jellal

Jellal kept thinking, after which Reaper wore the hood of his robe.

'Listen, that's all info I came across, I'll let you know if I get more info' said Reaper as he walked away

'Time travel to kill Zeref, I wonder if the consequences would be worth it' thought Jellal as he watched Reaper walk away

Reaper reached the stadium after half an hour, as he entered, he noticed the event of the day was already over. He grinned as he saw Minerva standing victorious, with all the other contestants on the ground

' _No.. Juvia..'_ thought Cole as he clenched his fist in anger

'She humiliated her' added Laxus

'Minerva stands victorious after today's event!' said the announcer, after which the crowd started chanting Sabertooth

'M'Lady, always ruthless' said Rufos

'Did I miss something?' asked Reaper as he entered his Team's area

'Minerva just destroyed them, showed them what we can do' replied Lector

'Well isn't that nice?' said Reaper, after which Minerva joined them

'Reaper, where were you?' she asked, folding her arms

'I had to run a few errands Minerva' replied Reaper, to which she smiled

'I thought of letting you in for today's event, but it seems you're a bit too late' she said with a smile on her face

'Sounds like you had fun' replied Reaper

'It's time for the battle rounds folks, first up, it's team Quattro Cerberus vs Team Blue Pegasus!' said the announcer

'Great, it's gonna be the bunny boys against those weirdos' said Reaper, as he sat on a chair

'I'm gonna go have a look at Juvia' said Cole as he was about to leave

'She'll be alright Cole, she wants us to stay here, so we don't lose focus' replied Laxus

'Damn, she was beat up pretty bad, she put up a great fight, damn it, I should have gone in myself, Agh..' Cole kept thinking, after which he just sat down and shook his head

'Cole, don't worry, we'll make sure they pay!' added Natsu, with a fiery look in his eye

'This time, it's going to be a tag team battle, two on two! The first match is Team Blue Pegasus's Ichiya and the mysterious rabbit-costumed man up against Team Quatro Puppy's Bacchus and Rocker'

As the battle starts, Ichiya tells the rabbit costumed person to reveal himself, much to everyone's anticipation. When the mask comes off, it is revealed to be the Exceed from Extalia and Ichiya's Edolas counterpart, Nichiya, stunning everybody.

'It can't be real, Oh god..' Said Erza, as she saw them, fainting on the spot.

'Erza what's the matter? Pull yourself together!' yelled Cole as he held her

As the two Blue Pegasus participants start reminiscing about their first meeting, Bacchus charges forward, landing a devastating hit on Nichiya, and knocking him out. With that, the battle becomes 2 on 1, and, as Ichiya is knocked around by his opponents, he laments on how he dragged a weak person like Nichiya into this. With that, Ichiya 'dedicates' a Power Perfume to Nichiya, bulks up, and defeats Quatro Puppy in one hit. With Blue Pegasus's victory decided for the first battle

The next battle is between Team Lamia Scale's Lyon and Yuka and Team Mermaid Heel's Kagura and Millianna, both teams fighting their best, but neither coming out on top, the fight ending in a draw and 5 points each.

'Alright folks, it's time for the third, and need I say, the most anticipated battle yet. It's Natsu and Gajeel from Team Fairy Tail vs Sting and Rogue from Team Sabertooth!'

'Finally, some action!' said Sting with a smile on his face

'Let's get this over with' replied Rogue

Reaper grinned as the two headed out, he looked at Team Fairy Tail as they headed out and gave a smile.

'This is going to be fun' he said as he leaned in to have a better view

' _Come on guys!'_ Cole thought as he looked at Natsu and Gajeel walk in


	23. Chapter 23 : Day 4 (Part 2)

Everyone was eagerly waiting for the fight to unfold, the dragon slayers of Fairy Tail against the dragon slayers of Sabertooth. The whole crowd watched as Nastu and Gajeel were standing face to face against Sting and Rogue

'Come on Natsu, you can do it' mumbled Cole as he leaned against the ledge and watched

Reaper grinned as the fight was about to commence

As Sting and Rogue ready themselves to go in, they immediately find themselves face-to-face with Natsu and Gajeel, respectively. Upon being hit in the face, they are sent flying back, much to the surprise of the audience. Chasing him down, Natsu lands a flaming kick on Sting and sends him across the area while Gajeel similarly knocks down Rogue. The knocked down Rogue then rolls to tackle down Gajeel.

Sliding across the ground, Sting unleashes his White Dragon's Roar but Natsu narrowly dodges his laser-like beam by ducking underneath it, causing it to miss. Sting then directs his attack to Gajeel, but Gajeel dodges by bowing it. Then Rogue attacks Gajeel with his Shadow Dragon's Slash but Gajeel blocks it with his Iron Dragon's Sword, which is then used to send Rogue flying. Natsu then grabs the flying Rogue by the face and runs toward Sting, who expresses surprise that Rogue is being handled in such a way. With both Sabertooth Dragon Slayers in the same area, Natsu smiles as he gatheres fire around his arms.

'Fire dragon! Wing attack!' he yelled as he attacked, sending both Sabertooth Dragon Slayers flying from the blow. Much of the audience watches in shock as the two Fairy Tail Dragon Slayers dominate the Twin Dragons of Sabertooth in the battle.

'No Sting!' yelled Lector in concern

Sting and Rogue stood up after the attack, staring at both Natsu and Gajeel, who were hardly breaking a sweat

'You're strong, I'd give you that' said Sting

'Tell me something, did you two really defeat the dragons who taught you how to use magic?' asked Natsu

'We not only defeated them, we killed them!' replied Sting, shocking both Natsu and Gajeel

Sting immediately attacks Natsu while Rogue attacks Gajeel. Unable to grasp his enemy from the shadows, Gajeel's attacks go through Rogue's body, allowing Rogue to elbow him in the face.

'What the hell? I can't even hit him!' yelled out Gajeel

In the stands, the spectators note the difference in Sting and Rogue's strength since their amplification.

Sting grab holds of Natsu and starts punching him repeatedly

'It's a shame, I always looked up to you once Natsu' said Sting while attacking Natsu

Meanwhile, Rogue appears behind Gajeel as the latter tries to attack him

'The shadow dragon always hunts it's prey' said Rogue, while attacking Gajeel

Just as he is about to land a blow, Gajeel grabs his arm and glares at him, asking what he was saying. At the same time, Natsu smiles as Sting charges at him. Just as Sting aims his punch, Natsu evades and decks Sting in the face.

'You guys shouldn't get carried away' said both Gajeel and Natsu

The entire audience watches on as the two Mages can barely lift a finger against their opponents, an unexpected occurrence. As everyone wonders if the match will end in Fairy Tail's victory, the two Sabertooth Dragon Slayers struggle to get back to their feet.

'That was amazing guys, let's wrap this up' thought Cole, while folding his arms and giving a smile

'It ain't over though' Reaper thought as he watched Sting and Rogue stand up, with a white and black aura beginning to surround their bodies respectively

'The crowd was amazed over their stamina, the two had activated their dragon force

'What in the hell?' said Cole as he looked surprised

After activating his dragon force, Sting looks at both Natsu and Gajeel, after which he gives a smile

'Leave them both to me Rogue' said Sting

'He's a lot stronger..' said Natsu, after which,in an instant, Sting nails Natsu in the face, sending him flying backwards.

Gajeel attempts to hit Sting with his iron leg, but he misses and is subsequently hit in the face by a blast of light. Natsu then attempts to hit Sting with his Fire Dragon's Iron Fist but his attack is caught by Sting and he is kicked in the stomach and tossed across the arena, hitting Gajeel and sending both flying. Sting then jumps in the air and unleashes his White Dragon's Holy Breath, shattering the floor of the arena.

'That's Sting alright!' yelled out Lector

'No, come on guys' whispered Lucy as she watched

'Hey, it ain't over yet!' yelled out Natsu, firing his Fire Dragon Roar at Sting, who managed to dodge it immediately. As Sting turns around, he noticed Gajeel behind him, who then uses his Iron Dragon's Roar at point-blank range, sending Sting crashing down. However, he quickly recuperates, to Gajeel's shock, and unleashes his Holy Ray, hitting both Natsu and Gajeel with multiple rays of light.

'What element is he even using, he's so fast' thought Cole as he kept watching

Natsu lands on his feet but is quickly punched by Sting's light-enhanced fist and is sent flying, unable to even block the punch. Gajeel is then kicked by Sting and the two Dragon slayers of Fairy Tail attempt to take down their opponent with hand-to-hand combat with no luck as Sting shuts out their attempts.

Natsu and Gajeel get beat down, they lie on the ground after which Sting and Rogue lift their hands

'Hey Lector, did you see that?' said Sting as he felt triumphant

'How about you Reaper?' he added with a slightly louder tone, to which Reaper just folded his arms and smiled

'No response from him as usual' said Sting

'Let it be' replied Rogue, after which he looked at both Natsu and Gajeel lying on the ground

'The time of the first generation dragon slayers is over' he added, with a faint smile on his face

Cole looked at them, then looked at Reaper and other Sabertooth members and charged his fist with lightning in anger

'Is this really it for Natsu and Gajeel?' mentioned the announcer

Suddenly. the two soon get to their feet and acknowledge Sting's strength.

Natsu immediately tells Sting he's learned his habits such as the timing of his attacks, his pose while defending and even his breathing rhythm, though he acknowledges the strength of Dragon Force. The supporters of Fairy Tail gleefully look on at the battle.

'That's right! Come on you two!' yelled out Cole, surprising others near him

'Uhh, I got caught up in the mood' he added, with a slight tone of embarrassment

Reaper grinned as he watched Natsu and Gajeel stand up and brush off their attacks

'Idiots' muttered Reaper, as he folded his arms and watched

Lector looked at Reaper in surprise, and then looked back at Sting, who was shocked over Natsu's perseverance.

'Alright, I'm all fired up!' yelled out Natsu, after which Gajeel stretched his arms.

'Hold on, I'm gonna go in first!' exclaimed Natsu as he blocked out Gajeel

'No way! I'm not backing down now!' replied Gajeel, after which Natsu gave a weird smile

'They're arguing?' thought Cole

Natsu pushed Gajeel on to a mine cart, after which he pushed the cart into a tunnel

'Hey! What the hell? Agh!' yelled out Gajeel, as the minecart took him away from the battleground. Natsu then turned around and gave Sting and Rogue a big smile

'Natsu? What the hell? He's gonna go two against one?' said Cole

Deciding to pay back Sting for underestimating him and Gajeel, Natsu decides to take on both Sting and Rogue alone.

'You can't be serious? You can't take on both of us alone' said Sting in a tone of anger

'This is ridiculous, I want to fight Gajeel' said Rogue

'We'll you're gonna have to fight me instead!' replied Natsu,punching his left palm with his right fist.

Sting reactivates his Dragon Force, 'Nothing in this world exceeds it' he added

Natsu responds enthusiastically as he blocks Sting's punch.

'I have the power to kill a Dragon!' yelled out Sting in anger

Natsu states he'll use his power to fight for the friends Sting mocked, quickly delivering a right hook to his face. At the same time, Rogue fires a Shadow Dragon's Roar at Natsu, and Natsu counters it with his Fire Dragon's Roar, creating an explosion which engulfs the area. Sting angrily claims the battle is not over yet, to which Natsu tells him to bring it, as his Fairy Tail allies watch.

With the entire audience watching him, Natsu dominates the twin Dragons in battle, dodging Rogue's attack and kicking Sting's face. Subsequently beating the two of them, Natsu proceeds to punch both of them in the face, knocking them both back.

The two soon meet up and together, and joined one of their hands together, unleashing tremendous amount of energy, shaking the entire stadium

'What are they doing? I can feel the fight all the way from here!' said Cole as he braced himself

Natsu stood still, as he watched them combine their powers

'He's standing still?' thought Cole as he looked surprised

Sting and Rogue combine their powers to unleash Unison Raid: Holy Shadow Dragon's Flash Fang, firing a massive beam of energy aimed at Natsu, However, Natsu counters it with his Crimson Lotus: Exploding Flame Blade, completely annihilating the Unison Raid and causing a large explosion as a result. After the dust clears, Sting and Rogue fall to the ground, unable to continue the battle.

'Unbelievable! Fairy Tail has defeated Sabertooth, all thanks to Natsu, he's managed to take on the twin dragons of Sabertooth all by himself!' yelled out the announcer, after which the crowd cheered out loud for Natsu

'He did it' said Cole with a smile on his face

Lector and Frosch were crying, Minerva looked at Sting and Rogue with disappointment

'How disappointing, Master Jiemma won't like this one bit' she said as she smiled

'They underestimated Fairy Tail' replied Reaper

Natsu walked towards his guild members, who were thrilled over his victory

'Where's Gajeel?' asked Lucy as she wondered where he went

'He won't be happy about you pushing him away like that' added Wendy

'Eh I wouldn't be worried too much' replied Natsu

Cole walked towards Natsu and patted his back

'You did it man!' said Cole, after which Natsu gave him a fistbump

'Yeah, ain't nothing gonna stop us!' replied Natsu

'Ladies and Gentlemen, that ends Day 4 of the Grand Magic games, join us tomorrow for the Grand Finale, till then, have a great day ahead!' exclaimed the announcer, after which everyone began to disperse

Cole and his team members were walking towards the exit, when Cole noticed Reaper standing near the door.

'I'll catch up with you guys later' said Cole, after which he waited for his friends to walk away, he walked towards Reaper, who was wearing a robe

'She might be awake by now' said Reaper as he looked at Cole

'Wendy?' replied Cole

'Yeah, and as soon as she tells you something, you better tell it to me too' said Reaper

'He's curious, I wonder why, well I can't blame him either, how is she here, and how did she have the plague'

'Alright, I'll see you at the park, tonight' said Reaper as he walked away

Cole looked at Reaper walking away, after which he took a deep breath

'So day 4 has ended, that means there's one more day to go, and more importantly, Wendy must be awake by now, I better head to the tavern right now' Cole thought as he walked towards the tavern

As Cole entered the Tavern, he noticed how all the guild members were silent, after walking a few steps inside, he was immediately hugged by Wendy, who was crying.

'Wendy.. What's? Wr..' he said, halting as he noticed another Wendy standing far from him

'Oh, she's recovered' thought Cole, as he was on his knees and hugged her back.

'I never thought I'd see you again!' she mumbled, while crying

'Wendy, it's alright' replied Cole


	24. Chapter 24 : The Calm Before The Storm

'Wendy, it's alright' said Cole as he held her, and closed his eyes while hugging her

'I... I..' she tried to speak up, after which she broke down, crying even more

'Is she alright..' asked the other Wendy in the room

'I'm not sure, she wasn't talking to anyone when she woke up, she was probably waiting for Cole' replied Mira

'Wendy, what happened?' asked Cole as he looked at her

Wendy wiped off her tears and looked at Cole after which she began to speak up

'It all happened so fast, we were out there, then suddenly, there was a big explosion' she replied

'An explosion?' asked Cole

'I.. I was scared, I saw people fighting, the sky turned red and..' she replied, with tears rolling down her cheeks

'Wendy, how did you end up here..' asked Cole

'You were with me when all this happened, I was following you and then someone attacked you.

'Someone attacked me?' he asked

'You were fighting with everything you had, After you got hit, I tried to help, but you were just lying on the ground, coughing blood. I tried using my magic to heal you, but...' she said, as she wiped her eyes

'What happened then?' Cole asked, placing his hand on her shoulder

'You caught hold of my hand, and told me you're proud of me of what I've become, and after that, you just closed your eyes and all of the sudden, I got sent back to the first day of the games' she replied

'She came back in time' whispered Erza

' _She's from the future, and the way she's describing it, it doesn't sound right'_ thought Cole as he patted her head

'Wendy, I won't let that happen' said Cole, as he stood up

Future Wendy didn't reply, she just wiped off the tears from her eyes, as she looked at the rest of the guild

'Do you know anything about the explosion?' Cole further asked

'I... I don't know, all I remember, is people getting sick, the sky turning red... And..' she replied, after which Cole kept a finger on her lips

'That's all I need to know, get some rest Wendy, I'll catch up with you soon' replied Cole as he walked towards the door

'Where are you going Cole?' asked Erza

'I need to talk with someone' replied Cole, as he opened the door

Cole walked across the streets of Crocus, with constant thoughts of Future Wendy's experiences in his mind. He felt a bit uneasy thinking about all of it

'What happened, an explosion? People getting sick? Was she referring to the plague?' Cole kept thinking as he entered the city park

Reaper was sitting at a bench not far from him, he noticed Cole approaching towards him, he got up and stared at Cole, as he came closer

'So, what did she tell you?' asked Reaper, with a tone of curiosity

'Wendy's.. From the future' replied Cole, with slight hesitation

'The future? That's pretty strange..' said Reaper as he folded his arms

'Yeah, and it seems the future wasn't a good one to begin with' said Cole

'What do you mean?' asked Reaper

'She told me there was an explosion, and people getting sick' said Cole

'The plague' replied Reaper

'Yeah, and not only that, seeing me die was the last thing she saw, before she time traveled' added Cole, with his voice diminishing

'It makes sense' said Reaper, getting Cole's attention

'Kessler was able to time travel, so you should be able to do it too, You sent her back to the past, to save her life' added Reaper

'I saved her..' thought Cole

'Well thinking about it won't help, she mentioned something about an explosion, and people getting sick, does it all ring a bell?' asked Reaper, as he began pointing out the evidences

'The Ray Sphere explosion..' replied Cole, feeling surprised over this revelation

'Yeah' replied Reaper

'But the Ray Sphere, it was destroyed! It couldn't possibly be here' said Cole

'When you activated the RFI, you ended up here, but when you came here, where was the RFI?' asked Reaper

'I.. I don't know, I didn't think about that' replied Cole

'Something tells me the RFI is in the wrong hands Cole, and they're gonna use it' replied Reaper

'How are we going to find the RFI?' asked Cole

'The truth is, we can't' replied Reaper

'What do you mean?' asked Cole

'It can be almost anywhere Cole, all we can do is be prepared of what is to come' replied Reaper

'I'm not gonna just sit around and wait for them to blow it up, I'll find the RFI, even if it takes me an entire day!' yelled out Cole in a loud tone

Reaper just grinned over Cole's words, as he wore the hood of his robe and was about to leave.

'Good luck Cole, for tomorrow's match' he said as he used his firebird strike to move away

'The world's about to collapse, and he's wishing me good luck for tomorrow's match? Something's definitely wrong with him, agh, I can't just sit here and do nothing, I need to find the RFI before it's too late'

Cole scoured across the rooftops, using his ice jump and lightning tether, he got to a high point and sat down, closed his eyes and focused his energy on his radial pulse, in an attempt to search for the RFI.

'Cole... I never thought I'd see you again!' a voice echoed in his mind

* * *

Reaper was traveling with his firebird strike, he entered Princess Hisui's room, where he was greeted by the princess herself

'You know you should start using the front door' she said jokingly

'It's a short notice' replied Reaper

'There's something I want to tell you as well' she said

'What's that?' asked Reaper curiously

'I met someone, from the future to be exact' she replied

'The future? Is she talking about Wendy?' Reaper thought as he listened to her carefully

'I have been told that my plan will work, if I make a modification to it' she replied

'What modification?' asked Reaper

'The eclipse gate, it can be activated to an eclipse cannon' replied Hisui

'What do you need a cannon for?' asked Reaper curiously

'The city will be overrun-ed by dragons, tomorrow, and the eclipse cannon can be used to defeat the dragons' she replied

'Dragons? You mean to say the city's going to get attacked? What exactly is going on here princess?' he further questioned her

'I.. I'm not sure' she replied

'How can you be sure about the person telling you they're from the future?' asked Reaper

'I can't tell you that Reaper' she replied

Reaper just shook his head, as he felt a bit angered

'Alright, suit yourself' he replied as he left the room

Hisui looked at him moving away with his firebird strike

'The outcome of the final day' she thought as she closed the window of her room

Reaper stood on top of a building, just near his guild tavern. He kept the robe inside his bag, and entered the tavern to see sting and rogue standing right in front of Jiemma. Reaper looks from afar as he watches Jiemma stand up and confront the two dragon slayers

'You two are a disgrace to the guild' said Jiemma in a bold tone

'Remove your guild marks, immediately!' yelled out Jiemma, knocking away all the other members in the room

'What's with this old man, he's getting on my nerve' thought Reaper as he angrily charged his fist

'With all due respect, Natsu Dragneel was a formidable opponent' said Rogue, only to get silenced by Jiemma

'Master, Rogue and Sting did try their best, so don't be too hard on them' said Frosh, after which Jiemma stared at him

This infuriates Jiemma even further, causing him to vaporize Frosh with a blast of Magic, much to the shock of the rest of the Guild.

'Jiemma! I've had enough of you!' yelled out Reaper as he used his firebird strike to knock Jiemma out in surprise

'Stand down Reaper!' yelled out Minerva as she tried to intervene

'Out of my way!' Reaper yelled out, blasting her away with a rocket, after which he dodged an attack from Jiemma and punched his belly ferociously

'W.. What do you think you're doing?' asked Jiemma

'Taking you out for good this time!' yelled out Reaper after which he aimed a skull bolt at his face

Jiemma punched the ground, shaking it, altering Reaper's aim, after which he escaped the tavern

'I won't let him get away!' yelled out Reaper, only to be stopped by Minerva

'Reaper, he's had enough' said Minerva

Reaper looked at her in anger, and then calmed down. He then noticed how Rogue was on his knees, with tears

'Rogue, are you alright?' asked Reaper

'This.. This is all your fault!' yelled out Rogue, to much of Reaper's shock

'My fault?' questioned Reaper

'Stand your ground Rogue, I have a proposition for you' said Minerva, lighting up Rogue and Reaper's eyes

'What do you mean?' asked Rogue

'I saved Frosh before Jiemma could kill him, and only I know about his whereabouts' she added

'Hmph, for once you did something great' said Reaper

'Please, bring him back!' yelled out Rogue, to which Minerva shook her head

'My intentions are the same as my father, I want our guild to be number 1 in Fiore, and tomorrow, all of you are going to play a role in that' she added

Reaper gathered red lightning around his right hand and aimed it at Minerva

'No more games Minerva, bring Frosh back, right now!' he yelled out in anger

'If you kill me, you'll never know where he is' she replied with a smile on her face

Reaper grunted, and then turned to look at Rogue. He had a flash of Frosch's image in his head, after which he stood his ground

'Good, I'm glad you can co operate' she said as she sat on the throne of Jiemma

'We win tomorrow, and you bring him back' said Reaper as he went and stood with his team

'You have my word' replied Minerva

* * *

'Damn it, no luck!' Cole grunted as he punched the floor in anger

'I better head to the Tavern, it's getting late' thought Cole, after which he left the rooftop to head towards the Tavern

Upon entering, he was surprised by the large gathering.

'Cole, Lucy has been arrested!' said Natsu in a loud tone

'Arrested? What happened?' asked Cole in confusion

'I don't know, but I'm gonna go and rescue her!' replied Natsu

'That's right, we need to find her, but at the same time, we need to think about tomorrow's game' replied Master Makarov

'What are we going to do?' asked Wendy

'I have come to a conclusion' replied Master Makarov, after which everyone turned their attention towards him

'The search and rescue team for Lucy will be Mira, Juvia and Wendy' he said after which Natsu began to interrupt

'I want to help! I can't sit around like this!' he said in anger

'Alright, Natsu is a part of this team too' said Master Makarov

'So, in conclusion, the five members for tomorrow's 5 man battle will be Erza, Gray, Gajeel, Ursa and Cole said Master Makarov, surprising everyone, including Ursa

'But, what about Laxus?' asked Ursa

'Gray wanted to prove himself, so we're giving him the opportunity to, We want to give you a shot at it as well' he replied, after which Ursa nodded her head

'I won't let you down!' she said, to which Laxus patted her shoulder

'You'll do great kid' said Laxus with a smile on his face

Cole looked around for a few seconds, after which he looked at Mira

'Have you seen Wendy? The one from the future?' he asked

'She's asleep in her room, after eating her dinner' replied Mira

'Alright, Thankyou' said Cole, after which, he noticed Master Mavis call him over

'So, it's down to the final day, and it's going to be an all out battle royale' Cole noticed Erza looking at him, to which he gave her a thumbs up

'Let's do our best Cole!' she said with a smile on her face

' _I can't let other things distract me, for now, I have to win it, for them!'_ Cole and the other team mates stood near Master Mavis, who started briefing over her battle tactics

' _Let's take care of this!'_

* * *

 _Please leave a review, I'll highly appreciate it!_


	25. Chapter 25 : The Battle Royale (Part 1)

'Welcome to the final day of the grand magic games!' exclaimed the announcer in excitement, as the crowd began to cheer

'Today's mega event will feature all 5 members of each team, competing in an all out battle royale!' he further added as screens began popping up

'So it's time' said Master Makarov as he looked at the fairy tail members standing on screen

'The rules of the event are simple, knocking out an opponent raises your team's tally of points by 1, and taking out the team captain, raises your tally by 5 points!' said the announcer, after which the scoreboard popped up

Sabertooth : 55

Fairy Tail : 48

Mermaid Heel :35

Lamia Scale : 39

Blue Pegasus :36

Quatro Cerberus :13

'Talk about competition, the teams are tied down neck to neck, and Sabertooth already has a solid lead of 8 points' said Freed

'I'm sure we can win it' replied Master Mavis

Meanwhile, at Team Sabertooth's side, Reaper and his team mates were standing , waiting for the event to begin

'Stick to the plan Reaper, and we'll win' said Minerva with a smile

Reaper folded his arms as he shook his head

'Watch out for Kagura and Jura, they're not your primary targets' she added, to which Reaper just smiled back

'What are you laughing about?' asked Minerva

'When it comes to having a fight, I already know who my target is' he replied, as he looked at the screen

'What ever you do, don't jeopardize the plan we discussed' she commanded

Erza, Gray, Gajeel, Ursa and Cole were standing together, as a breeze blew in. All of them had their eyes closed, as they waited for the event to begin. Suddenly, Cole had a flashback of him activating the Ray Sphere

'Gah!' yelled out Cole as he started pant

'Is everything alright?' asked Erza

'Everything's.. Fine, don't worry' he replied as he took a deep breath and cleared his mind

'The RFI is out there somewhere, I need to figure that out, but for now I have to focus on this match, it's important' Cole thought as he picturized Master Mavis.

The bell was struck, and the teams were off, looking around to find anyone they can knock down

'So Natsu and the others, where are they right now?' asked Lissana

'I advised them to infiltrate as soon as the games begin, as everyone will be having their eyes on the games' replied Master Makarov

The game goes on with each member of Team Quatro Cerberus taken down quite easily. Beth and Araña also get knocked out by the Trimens.

'They're raking up points pretty fast!' said Lissana

'Look over there!' pointed someone from the crowd, after which everyone had their attention on a screen

'Two against one' mumbled Lissana, as they saw Toby and Yuka against Kagura

'Fools' whispered Kagura as she knocked them down with one blow, causing an uproar by the crowd

'But.. They're accumulating all the points, at this rate, we'll lose! Why is our team just standing there?' asked Master Makarov in concern, to which Master Mavis replied with a smile

'It's time for my strategy to commence' she replied, after which all the members opened their eyes and bursted through the streets

'Incoming!' yelled out Cole as he sensed a lightning attack from Rufus in the sky, to which Ursa quickly made a shield out of lightning and deflected it

'Nice work!' commended Erza, after which they proceed towards the city

Erza finds Jenny and quickly defeats her, giving their team the first point

Gajeel locates the Trimens and manages to knock out Ren and Eve.

Hibiki manages to get out of his line of fire only to run into Gray

'Where do you think you're going?' taunted Gray as he froze Hibiki, giving his team another point

'The trimens, they have bean defeated? I will avenge them all!' exclaimed Ichiya, only to be knocked out by Jura, eliminating team Blue Pegasus from the game, and giving Lamia scale 5 points

Elsewhere, Sherria defeats Risley, giving Lamia Scale another point.

'Team Lamia Scale is on a roll!' yelled the announcer as their points tally kept increasing

'Did you have a plan for Jura?' asked Master Makarov in concern

'I'm not sure' she replied, after which she looked at the screen.

Meanwhile, Team Fairy Tail in hesitation, split up in order to cover more points. Ursa is walking around the streets, when suddenly he see's a shadow.

'Reveal yourself!' she yells as she charges her fist with white lightning

Rogue comes out of hiding, having narrowed eyelids

'Rogue, the shadow dragon slayer' thought Ursa as she looked at him

'I won't let you get in my way!' yelled out Rogue as he fired a shadow dragon roar aimed at her.

'So fast!' exclaimed Ursa as she used a shield out of lightning to block his attack.

'That won't save you!' exclaimed Rogue as he used his shadow to appear behind Ursa and punched her, sending her flying away

'This is bad, Ursa doesn't stand a chance against Rogue' said Master Makarov

'This wasn't a part of my strategy, Ursa should bail out as soon as she can' replied Mavis, after which both of them were surprised to see her stand up and pant

Ursa clenched her fist in anger as she looked at Rogue approach towards her.

'Scatter shot!' she yelled as she sent a wave of lightning, Rogue jumped to dodge her attack, after which she slammed her fists onto the ground and a wave of lightning crashed underneath Rogue. She then charged her fists and jumped, punching Rogue midair and then slamming him onto the ground, after which she fired a lightning bolt aimed at him before landing.

As she landed, she was surprised to see Rogue stand up, with even more anger.

'This isn't going to be easy' she thought as she charged her body with lightning

Meanwhile, Gray, who was walking around, stumbled upon Rufus in the library

'Ah, you must be the Ice wizard from fairy tail' said Rufus

'You better get ready for a rematch bunny boy' taunted Gray as he took off his shirt

'Will Gray be able to beat him?' asked Makarov

'I'm not sure, but beating Rufus is really necessary. I was hoping Cole would take him on, but' she replied

Elsewhere, Reaper was walking around the streets, when he noticed Jura approaching him.

'Reaper, from Sabertooth' taunted Jura as he approached him

'You're the bald guy who's supposed to be strong or something?' asked Reaper

'You can put it that way, if you like' replied Jura, to which Reaper smiled

'Well I think I've got time to take care of you' he added, as he began charging up his body

'Reaper's gonna go against Jura?' thought Erza as she looked at them facing each other on a screen

'Eat this!' yelled out Reaper, sending an alpha rocket at Jura, who just jumped towards the side to dodge it, and followed it with attempting to throw a boulder at him

'That won't do anything' taunted Reaper as he used his kinetic pulse to lift the boulder and send it back at Jura

Jura was surprised, he immediately called out a rock in front of himself to block the attack, after which he noticed the ground beginning to shake

'What magic is this?' he thought to himself, as Reaper was firing multiple alpha rockets at his defensive rock.

'Can't hide behind that thing forever Jura' taunted Reaper, after which he noticed Jura jump up and summon a giant hand of rock

The giant hand was coming towards Reaper at a high speed, Reaper just grinned and covered his right fist with lightning and punched the rock, shattering it into pieces.

'It's over!' said Jura as the shattered pieces of Rock began sticking onto Reaper's body.

'The hell?!' exclaimed Reaper in surprise, after which all the rocks completely covered his body

'Supreme King Rock Crush!' yelled out Jura, after which the rocks compressed against each other.

'I was hoping you would have been more of a challenge' taunted Jura with a smile, after which he turned around and was about to leave

'He defeated... Reaper?' thought Freed

Suddenly, The rocks began to crumble after which Reaper bursted out, and punched an unsuspecting Jura on his back.

Reaper dusted his clothes and cracked his neck as he watched Jura stand up

'I'm just getting started' said Reaper with a smile

Ursa was bout to attack, but was overwhelmed by Rogue crawling into the shadows to dodge her attack, after which she looked around and couldn't find him

'A shadow dragon always gets his prey!' exclaimed Rogue after he attempted to punch her prom behind. Ursa quickly caught hold of his arm, surprising Rogue and tossing him onto the ground, followed by jumping behind and shooting two lightning bolts out of her hands.

'Ursa's really.. Strong' said Lissana

'It isn't strength, it's technique' replied Romeo, surprising everyone around him

'Ursa used to train under Blaze, all her fighting skills came from her. And Blaze learned those from someone named Frost' he added, surprising Freed

'Frost? The same mage that attacked that day during the escort mission' he thought to himself, after which he looked at Ursa

Ursa gave a smile as she was panting, when suddenly Rogue caught her from behind.

'I'm afraid this is it' taunted Rogue as he brought his fist near her face. Ursa closed her eyes and covered her body with lightning, shocking Rogue

'What is this!' yelled out Rogue in frustration, after which he noticed chains out of lightning wrapping his body

She then aimed her palm charged with lightning at Rogue's face, who couldn't move

Rogue tried to struggle, but couldn't move

'It's over' she said , after which she noticed tears falling off of Rogue's cheeks. She powered down and looked at Rogue, and noticed him whisper to himself

'I'm sorry Frosh, I couldn't save you' he whispered to himself in tears, when suddenly, he closed his eyes, and the lightning chains broke, surprising Ursa. She stood on guard as she noticed Rogue stand up, with dark stripes beginning to cover his body and hands.

'Dragon force? No.. This is different' she thought, when suddenly she was punched from behind, knocking her airborne

Ursa tried to recover midair, she noticed a wave of shadows coming towards her really fast. She attempted to block it but couldn't and fell onto the ground

'You're pathetic!' said Rogue, in a voice a lot deeper than usual.

'Ursa, get up..' thought Master Makarov

Ursa clenched her fists and attempted to stand up, surprising Rogue

'You refuse to back down?' said Rogue, to which Ursa just smiled

'That's foolish' he added as he fired a Shadow Dragon roar at her. Ursa rolled over to dodge his attack, but again got punched in the abdomen, followed by a brutal kick, which sent her flying

Cole, who was traversing through the rooftops noticed a wave of magic aimed at him. He immediately used his frost shield and landed on the ground, blocking the attack

'Alright, let me introduce myself!' said Cole as he took out his amp and charged it up

'I already know who u are, let's finish this quickly' replied a woman, walking towards him wielding a sword

'Kagura' said Cole as he fired a magnum bolt, which Kagura deflected and moved in to attack

As Cole watched her close in, he held his amp with a tight grip and waited, seconds later, he saw Erza come in and collide Kagura's sword with hers

'Cole, you need to go and help Ursa, now!' said Erza as she kicked Kagura away

'What do you mean?' asked Cole, after which he looked at the screen of the fight between Ursa and Rogue

'Don't worry, I will handle Kagura!' said Erza as she drew out her sword

'We have a better chance of taking her out together!' yelled out Cole

'There's not enough time, we can't gamble, not when we're short of points ourselves' she added, after which Cole just stood motionless

'Erza, I hope you know what you're doing, good luck' Cole used his ice jump to move away

'Erza Scarlet, to what do I owe the favor?' asked Kagura, holding her sword in anger

'Kagura' said Erza, as she changed into her heaven's wheel armor, and weilded two swords

'Armor won't save you from me' she added as she charged in to attack

Rogue lifted up Ursa, chocking her as she was exhausted from their fight.

'You weren't even worth my time' he said, after which he tossed her away

Ursa landed on the ground and tried to stand up

'I'm, too.. Weak' she kept thinking as she looked at Rogue, after which she closed her eyes

'I guess that will do' said Rogue, as he felt victorious


	26. Chapter 26 : The Battle Royale (Part 2)

'Ursa, she..' mumbled Lissana

'No..' added Laxus as he stared at the screen while folding his arms

When everyone believed the battle was over, Ursa's body started to rattle

Rogue turned around, and grinned as he watched Ursa stand up, with her hand on her knee

'You refuse to back down' said Rogue, after which he fired a wave of energy. Ursa stood up and blocked it with one hand, surprising everyone, including Rogue

'No, I'm not weak anymore, I've been sent to fight for a reason, and I'll fight, even if it means giving everything I got!' thought Ursa as she narrowed her eyelids and posed in front of Rogue

'You can't beat me, no matter how hard you try' said Rogue as he charged in to Ursa. She stood still and swiftly moved across his attack, followed by delivering a swift kick

Rogue shook his head after he stood up from the attack.

'How come she's so fast all of the sudden?' he thought, after which he was surprised to look at Ursa beginning to charge up.

'I'm gonna defeat you, no matter what it takes' said Ursa, as she began gathering energy around her body, the white lightning around her began turning red, followed by her body turning black, with a skull face paint.

'Th..this energy, that face, no way, Reaper?' said Rogue in awe of her transformation

'I hope you're ready for round two!' yelled out Ursa in her Reaper transformation as she charged in towards Rogue

'Is that.. Ursa? How and why does she look like Reaper?' asked Master Makarov

'I kinda felt she had some power within her when we trained, but, I sure as hell didn't expect this' replied Laxus

Ursa drew out her hands and quickly made two swords out of red lightning, attacking Rogue with immense speed. Rogue attempted to dodge her attacks, but failed and got struck

'What is this? She's so, Gahh!' yelled out Rogue, while being attacked. He immediately tried hiding under the shadows, to dodge her attack

'I don't think so!' yelled out Ursa, as she made a chain out of her lightning and pulled Rogue out, followed by punching him straight in the face, knocking him away

Cole had arrived at a rooftop near their fight

'Ursa? Where are you? And who's that fighting Rogue?' Cole thought as he inspected the battle scene

'Is that?' Cole was surprised to see a girl with Reaper's face paint engaged in a hand to hand combat with Rogue

'Ursa?!' yelled out Cole, to which Ursa turned around, to which she got sucker punched by Rogue

Cole immediately dropped down and aimed his fist at Rogue, however, Ursa immediately stood up and came in between

'Cole, this is my fight' said Ursa

'Ursa? What happened to you? How did you get his power?' asked Cole

'Now's not the right time to talk, for now, I want to finish off this fight' replied Ursa, surprising Cole

Cole stood still and watched as Ursa charged her body and bursted towards Rogue, deflecting off his attacks and punching him straight in the torso, followed by gathering red lightning around her fists and calling a lightning strike onto the ground

A bright red lightning struck Rogue's body, illuminating the entire city

* * *

Reaper looked around to see the flash and grinned

'She managed to unlock it' thought Reaper after which he turned around and fired double grenades at Jura, who used his rocks to counter the bombs

'You know what, I'm getting bored, let's finish this' said Reaper, to which Jura replied with a smile

Reaper gathered electricity around himself, after which he started running towards Jura. Jura attempted to make him fall by rattling the ground, to which Reaper used his firebird strike and closed in. Jura attempted to finish him off with a blow, but failed as he watched Reaper fire an alpha rocket at the ground, inches away from his attack. The rocket propelled Reaper upwards, dodging Jura's attack, which he followed by using a punch blast, knocking Jura off his feet.

'Well done!' said Jura, acknowledging his defeat, after which Reaper knocked him out with a scythe bolt

'That's five points for us' thought Reaper as he shook his head

* * *

Ursa started walking towards Rogue, with her eyes glowing a crimson red, she lifted him up and charged her fist, after which she was surprised to see a shadow run off from her. She then kept Rogue's body on the ground and transformed back to her normal self.

'He was possessed' she said to herself as she started panting and was on her knees

'Are you alright?' asked Cole as he walked towards her

'I'm fine.. Cole' she replied

'That's one point for us, but Sabertooth's still on the lead' said Laxus

Cole and Ursa started walking towards where Cole had seen Erza, with hopes of helping her, when all of the sudden, they noticed someone standing in their way.

'It's been a while Cole' said Reaper with a smile on his face

'Reaper..' replied Cole as both of them started staring at each other

Erza is engaged in a battle with Kagura and exchanges multiple blows with the latter,

Suddenly, Minerva, appearing out of thin air, intervenes the battle between the two extremely talented sword fighters as she flips them both over.

' I challenge you two, at once!' said Minerva with a smile on her face

As Minerva challenges the two of them, and they accept her request, the three female Mages, recognized as the strongest female Mages competing in the Grand Magic Games of the current year, ready for battle.

The three commence their assaults on their targets by delivering one attack after the other. Several attacks later, Minerva casts Yagdo Rigora, directing it towards both Kagura and Erza. However, despite being hit by said technique, Kagura and Erza stand their position, unfazed.

'You two are tough, but..' said Minerva, after which she revealed the fact that she has captured Millianna, Kagura's team mate

Kagura attempts to retrieve her comrade, but her efforts are futile as the Sabertooth Mage switches place with Erza before she can do so. The switch results in a clash between Erza and Kagura, leaving both Mages stunned at the change.

'Whoever is victorious here, can become my prey' she said as she manages to make Millianna disappear with her Magic.

After being insulted and returning a complement, Minerva beings to walk off as she states that using all means necessary is the way a King fights.

'Bring Millianna back! This is between us!' yelled out Erza

'Stop pretending to be Millianna's friend!' yelled out Kagura, after headbutting Erza

'I'll take you down Erza, no matter what it takes, and when I'm done with you, I'll finish her off!' yelled out Kagura as she dashed in and started exchanging blows with Erza

Erza quickly rises her sword, clashing with Kagura . However, Kagura manages to push Erza back with the impact of their collision, prompting Erza to Requip to her Heaven's Wheel Armor. After fully Requipping into her armor, Erza aims her Pentagram Sword spell towards Kagura, only to see the latter swiftly dodging it with the slightest movements.

Looking down on Erza from above and acquiring her Strong Form, Kagura aims the tip of her Archenemy ( Her sword) at Erza's current standing position as she comes crashing down with immense speed and renowned strength, catching Erza off guard as she manages to destroy the terrain around them with said blow, as well as shattering Erza's Heaven's Wheel Armor to bits. Taking a hold of her Archenemy, Kagura puts it behind her back, grabbing the pommel with opened palms, and gripping the scabbard tightly, assuming her Slash Pose.

Both quickly and efficiently, Erza Requips to her Adamantine Armor, in hopes to prevent further damage to her body by preventing Kagura's attack to inflict harm upon her. However, despite her attempt to block the incoming attack, her efforts prove to be futile nonetheless as Kagura dives down on her, completely dismantling her strongest defense in her possession.

'Erza's getting, defeated in a sword fight?' thought Master Makarov

'Look! Over there!' yelled out Lissanna, after which everyone turned their attention to Cole and Reaper, staring at each other

'Their battle is about to go off' mumbled Laxus

'Cole..' whispered Master Mavis

Erza stood up, panting from Kagura's attack, tried to stand her ground, when suddenly, Kagura comes close to Erza and kicks her in the stomach, sending Erza flying backwards and slamming her on a nearby pillar

'What.. What is the source of your power?' asked Erza with curiosity

'My hatred.. Against Jellal' replied Kagura, surprising Erza

'Jellal, and any of his associates, must die, that means you, and the Sabertooth mage called Reaper' she added

'Reaper? How is.. He associated with Jellal?' asked Erza

'You shouldn't be the one asking questions, Jellal killed my brother Simon, and I'll avenge him!'

'Simon.. He didn't die because of Jellal, he died because of me' said Erza, surprising Kagura, putting her to shock

Kagura points her sword at Erza in anger, stating she will end her and Jellal

'I can't give up now, giving up will be a slap on the face for Simon, and all the other people who laid their lives before me' said Erza as she stands up, and attempts to attack Kagura, and succeeds. Kagura is slashed by Erza, but is quick to regain her stability. As she is about to mumble some words to her opponent, a pillar next to Kagura comes crumbling down on her, but just in the nick of time, Erza manages to push her out of the way.

Unfortunately for Erza, the rubble lands on her lower body instead.

Kagura remains confused over Erza saving her from the rubble

'I remember now, we were from the same village' said Erza with a smile

Kagura got flashbacks of her childhood, where she remembered Erza saving her from being abducted. She broke down in tears, and expressed her confusion

'I.. I accept defeat' said Kagura, seconds before Minerva stabbed her from behind, surprising Erza and the entire audience

'This is how you win wars' said Minerva with a smile on her face, after which the points increased in Sabertooth's scoreboard tally

Kagura falls to the ground with her hands placed on the wound caused by Minerva to prevent it from releasing more blood, as well as having trouble breathing as she coughs out blood. Minerva drops the sword which she used to stab Kagura with as she turns her attention to the grievously injured Erza sprawled out beneath her.

'So you will be my next prey!' exclaimed Minerva

'Erza.. Please rescue Millianna' murmured Kagura, before getting knocked out, further angering Erza

'With those injuries, you won't even last a minute against me' said Minerva

Erza stared at Minerva with anger, after which she holds her fists tightened

While Erza is attempting to stand firmly despite her injured leg, Minerva takes advantage of this impairment and uses her Magic to grab the wounded limb and to throw Erza into a pillar.

Erza stands up, after which she looks at a screen to see Cole facing Reaper

'I can't give up, not now!' yelled Erza, as she unleashes her second origin, increasing her power.

'Re-quip! Spirit of the Conduit!' yelled out Erza as she changed into a new armor, having Clothes similar to Cole and wielding a weapon almost similar to Cole's amp

Erza spun the amp, calling out a massive lightning bolt at Minerva. As Minerva dodged, Erza dashed in and struck her with her amp, followed by zapping her with the lightning from her amp, followed by freezing her legs

'This is the end!' yelled out Erza, calling out another lightning strike by spinning her amp, knocking out Minerva and ending her battle

Not far from them, Gray had emerged victorious out of his battle against Rufus, thus Fairy Tail had gained two more points.

Gajeel had defeated Bacchus from Quattro Cerberus, thus gaining 5 points, soon after which he was faced by Sting

'Ursa, go help out the others' said Cole, to which Ursa just looked at him

'Cole' she said in a low tone, right after which she fled the area

'About time we had a throw down McGrath!' said Reaper with a smile on his face

'Just so you know, I'm not gonna hold back' said Cole

'What makes you think I would?' replied Reaper, as both of them stared at each other, with lightning auras beginning to cover their bodies

' _I'm going to beat you Reaper, and win this, for Fairy Tail!'_


	27. Chapter 27 : The Battle Royale (Part 3)

Cole and Reaper had a stare-down, a battle between the two was almost inevitable, Ursa had fled on the instructions of Cole, as she walked away, she turned around to see flickers of lightning around the two.

Reaper made the first move by firing an alpha rocket, to which Cole replied by firing one back at him. The two rockets collided, resulting in an explosion, catching the entire crowd's attention

Cole charged his right hand and fired multiple bolts at Reaper, who was rolling to dodge his attacks. Cole then slammed his fist onto the ground, after which ice spikes began to converge towards Reaper.

'Damn it!' yelled out Reaper as he charged his fist and punched the ice, shattering it and halting Cole's attack.

'You're wide open!' yelled out Cole as he closed in onto Reaper and swung his amp, knocking him back

Cole gave a smile as he held his amp and watched Reaper stand up

'Huh.. Glad to see you're taking this seriously' said Reaper while charging his body

'Oh I'm just getting started!' replied Cole, after which he dashed towards Reaper with his fist charged. Reaper grinned and followed up, resulting in a collision between their fists, sending a massive shock wave, which knocked Ursa off of her far away from the fight scene

'They're going all out, Cole and Reaper..' she thought to herself, as she stood up and kept walking forward

Reaper quickly fired a rocket, to which Cole used his ice jump, dodging the attack

'Oh you're not gonna get away that easily!' yelled Reaper, using his firebird strike to close in. Cole stood still and used his graviton blast, nullifying Reaper's attack, and followed it by slamming Reaper onto the ground with his amp. Cole landed on the ground and was surprised to see Reaper recover to his attack so fast. Reaper quickly punched Cole on the chest and fired an alpha Rocket at point blank range, knocking away Cole a couple of meters from him. Reaper grinned as he watched Cole struggle to stand up after the attack

Cole stood up, holding his chest with his right hand, after which ice shards began to fall off from him

'Well well, you made an armor out of ice that fast, I'm impressed' said Reaper, while aiming his right hand at Cole

Reaper fired a scythe bolt repeatedly. Cole quickly got up and fired magnum bolts, their attacks collided, illuminating the entire area

* * *

'I believe the time wouldn't be better for us to initiate our plans' said Arcadios, standing before Princess Hisui

'We mustn't make haste' replied Princess Hisui, as she looked at herself in a mirror

'With all due respect, we have all the celestial keys, there wouldn't be a better time than now to proceed with our plans' said Arcadios

'I'm well aware of that, but the results of Today's games matter, I need to know the victor of today's game, just to be sure' she said, while looking at the Grand Magic Game's stadium

Suddenly, a guard interrupts the two by knocking on the door

'Sir, Princess, I have news' said the guard, after opening the door

'What is it?' asked Princess Hisui

'The device has begun charging, we couldn't make it work before, but we're able to charge it right now' said the guard, to which Arcadios grinned

'Excellent!' said Arcadios, after which Princess Hisui kept looking at him

'How can you be sure about the device Arcadios?' she asked

'Let's just say I've been tipped off by someone, if everything goes according to plan, we can expect great things' he replied

* * *

Gajeel and Sting were engaged in combat, but Sting couldn't match upto Gajeel, he got knocked away by a punch in the face by Gajeel.

'Reaper.. He.. He'll take all of you down' said Sting, while lying on the ground, giving a smile

'Huh? That guy? Well guess what, we've got an ace in our sleeves too!' replied Gajeel

Sting looked at the sky, while lying on the ground. He saw a red lightning bolt strike, followed by a blue lightning bolt, illuminating the sky.

'Sting felt a bit uneasy, feeling weak, and unable to do anything.

'How can I.. Just lie down here, doing nothing, while he's out there giving everything he has' he said to himself, clenching his fists

He stood up, and activated his Dragon rush, while narrowing his eyelids, looking at Gajeel, who turned around

'So you are gonna fight after all' said Gajeel, seconds after which he was punched in the abdomen by Sting

'W.. What the?' yelled out Gajeel in pain, as he looked at Sting

'Now then, let's fight!' yelled Sting, while preparing to launch an attack

* * *

Cole and Reaper were engaged in a fierce hand to hand combat, exchanging blows between one another, resulting in sparks of lightning flicker across their bodies.

Cole held his amp and attempted to strike Reaper, but was surprised to see Reaper deflect his attack with an object. Cole moved away and aimed his hand at Reaper, who just held the weapon on his hand

'Didn't know you made your own weapon Reaper' said Cole

'Do you like it? Kinda fits don't you think? A scythe for a Reaper!' exclaimed Reaper, while swirling his scythe, sending out a scythe shaped lightning bolt at Cole.

Cole used his ice jump to dodge the attack and simultaneously used his thunder drop right next to Reaper, who held the scythe against himself and blocked the counter attack from Cole

'Damn, those attacks from his scythe are a lot stronger than usual, maybe he's using the same tech Zeke used for making my amp' Cole thought as he brushed off his shirt and watched Reaper wield his scythe and give a smile

'Come on!' yelled out Cole as he charged in with his amp and struck Reaper's scythe, releasing immense energy around them

* * *

Ursa was running across the streets, when suddenly, she bumped into Shelia from Team Lamia Scale

'Lyon! I found one!' she yelled out, surprising Ursa, after which she blew a gust of wind at her, knocking her off of her feet.

'Nicely done!' said Lyon, as he froze Ursa, while she tried to stand up

Ursa stood motionless, with her body frozen, with no expression whatsoever

'Now then, surrender!' said Lyon as he held his hand against her face

'I don't think that's going to be an option!' yelled out someone, while attacking Lyon and Shelia from behind

'Gray?!' exclaimed Ursa, as Gray came sprinting towards her

'You good? If I had been a minute late they would have gotten to you' said Gray as he attempted to thaw Ursa out of the ice

'Oh I don't think that would have happened' replied Ursa, as she covered her body with lightning and broke free

'I was just waiting for the right moment' she said with a smile, surprising Gray

'You know, you kinda freak me out at times' said Gray while scratching his head

'What's that supposed to mean?' she asked curiously, with a pale look on her face

'Nothing.. Nothing at all kid!' he replied, while patting her back

'You know we're not done fighting yet right?' said Ursa as she posed in front of Shelia and Lyon with a fighting stance

'Oh, you're right!' said Gray, as he held his fist against his palm

'I say we split up, I have a higher chance to counter Lyon with my mobility, you can take care of Shelia!' said Ursa as she created a sword out of lightning and charged towards Lyon

'Hey wait! Man, I'm always used to being bossed around by ladies' said Gray, as he fired icicle spears at Shelia, who attempted to come in between Ursa

Lyon stood patiently and waited, he then slammed his legs on to the ground, sending out a wave of Ice shards at her. Ursa jumped to dodge his attack and was about to strike, only for her attack to be deflected by a quick shield made by Lyon

'Impressive move, but that won't cut it for you!' said Lyon as he attempted to attack with his other hand, when suddenly, he noticed his hand was wrapped with chains made out of lightning

'I...Impossible!' exclaimed Lyon, after which he attempted to break free, but was then kicked on the torso by Ursa

'Woah, it's like she knows this battle inside out' thought Gray, while freezing the ground around Shelia

'Hey Ursa! You know what time it is?' asked Gray

Ursa looked at him, being clueless over what he was referring to

'Look at the floor!' yelled out Gray, after which she looked at the icy floor, to see the reflection of the sky

'It's... Afternoon?' she replied, being puzzled

Gray suddenly jumped onto the icy floor and skidded towards Ursa, at a high speed, followed by dodging Shelia's attacks

Ursa looked at the icy floor, after which she grinned and made a board out of lightning with her magic. Gray and Ursa moved swiftly around Shelia, dodging her attacks while moving in circles, making her confused

'Now!' yelled out Gray as both of them halted, one on the opposite side of the other. Ursa and Gray started to converge towards Shelia. In a desperate attempt of defense, Shelia aimed at both Ursa and Gray. Seconds before she could fire, Gray made an ice wall to block the attack from Ursa, and in turn, took a hit himself

Ursa however, quickly jumped atop the ice wall and held Shelia with her chains, followed by kicking her away towards Lyon

'You suggested on using the ice to increase our mobility' said Ursa, while lifting Gray up

'Well, I didn't know you'd be so clueless, for someone who can fight so well

'You could have just been direct' said Ursa, while narrowing her eyelids

'Well where's the fun in that?' joked Gray, after which the two noticed Lyon and Shelia stand up, being weakened after the fight

'What do you say we wrap this up?' said Gray with a smile, to which Ursa nodded

Both of them held hands as they combined their magic to form a unison raid

'Ice Geyser!' yelled out Gray

'Static : Thunderbolt!' yelled out Ursa

Both of their magic combined, releasing a powerful ionized ice, blasting away Lyon and Shelia, giving Fairy Tail 2 more points

* * *

Gajeel had been facing Sting, in a desperate last resort, Sting decided to give everything he had. But in turn, couldn't make the difference. He managed to injure Gajeel to a good extent, giving him a tough fight

'You're not too shabby kid, I gotta tell you that' said Gajeel as he held his left arm with his right arm

'Reaper.. Please.. Save Frosh' whispered Sting

'Huh.. What was that?' asked Gajeel

'Please.. Save Frosh.. Reaper, you're the only one..' whispered Rogue, while lying on the ground

Cole and Reaper had been been fighting for quite a while. Cole then looks at Reaper, while aiming his palm at him. He's surprised to see Reaper suddenly standing still, doing nothing.

'Guess I'm the only one left..' whispered Reaper while he began charging his body. As he charged himself, the ground began to shake as the energy grew fiercer and fiercer.

'This energy.. Was he holding back all this time?' thought Cole as he looked at Reaper, with a bright red lightning aura surrounding his body.

'I'll save you Frosh..' thought Reaper as he looked at Cole and was about to attack

'This ends now Reaper!' yelled out Cole


	28. Chapter 28 : Fight for the title!

'So Sabertooth has 66 points, they made a smart move by keeping Reaper as their leader' said Lissana

'I'm afraid if Fairy Tail has to win, they should be making sure Reaper doesn't get any single one of Fairy Tail' replied Master Mavis, catching everyone's attention

'Look, Fairy Tail has 62 points, if we beat Reaper without losing any single one, we'll win, otherwise, Sabertooth will take it home' she added, after which everyone had their attention towards Cole and Reaper

'So everything is on Cole's hands, he needs to win' said Master Makarov, after which he raised his fist and cheered out loud, along with the other guild members

Cole and Reaper dashed towards each other fought, delivering blows to one another, creating sparks of lightning illuminating the entire battleground. Cole used his ice jump and attempted to thunderdrop on top of Reaper, but unfortunately for him, Reaper rolled over and dodged the attack.

'Too easy!' yelled out Reaper, after which he caught hold of Cole's hand and punched his chest, knocking him away

'Ghh.. Damn it..' Cole thought as he held his chest mid air and used his static thrusters with one hand to soften his landing

'Come on!' yelled out Reaper, right after which he noticed ice starting to cover up his legs

'What the?' Reaper thought after which he turned around to see Gray and Ursa, posing and ready to fight

'Get up Cole! Let's take this guy down together!' yelled out Gray as he was about to attack

'Gray! Ursa! Get out of here, now!' ordered Cole, while slamming his fist on the ground and creating a barrier of ice between Reaper and the others

'What do you think you're doing? We have a better chance of taking him out together!' said Gray, as he attempted to break the wall

'No! If one of us gets knocked out, we'll lose the tournament!' replied Cole

Gray stood motionless for a while, after which he caught hold of Ursa's hand

'Let's go, he needs to do this' he said to her, to which she just shook her head

'Good luck, Cole.. Reaper..' whispered Ursa, as she watched the two looking at them walk away

'This might be it folks, the showdown between Fairy Tail's Cole McGrath and Sabertooth's Reaper, this match is going to decide who will win this years games, and I for one, cannot wait to see how this battle unfolds!' exclaimed the announcer, right after which Cole and Reaper shot a lightning bolt simultaneously, both missing their targets and traveling far

Cole used his frost dash to circle around Reaper, who was grinning as he watched Cole move around him very fast.

'You can't stop me like that' said Reaper as he held his hands together and let out a large aura around him. He called it the ionic drain, an attack draining the energy out anyone within a 6 meter radius of him

Cole suddenly stopped midair as he felt his energy being drained away rapidly

'Crap.. I can't.. Move!' yelled out Cole as he struggled to aim his palm and attempted to disrupt Reaper by shooting him in the face. He was successful and managed to free himself, but felt weakened after the attack

'Whew.. That was refreshing' said Reaper as he looked at his palm and gathered lightning around it

'Thanks!' said Reaper, firing a scythe bolt at the weakened Cole, when suddenly, Cole used his frost shield to block out his attack

'I'm not done yet!' said Cole as he stood up and stared deep into Reaper's eyes

'Great, round two maybe?' joked Reaper, while cracking his neck

'Who said I lost round one?' taunted Cole while taking out his amp

'Heh.. Well you didn't look so good after that' said Reaper, while taking out his scythe

'Oh I'm good alright, fit as a fiddle!' replied Cole while stretching his arms

'Hmph... That's a big ass fiddle' joked Reaper, while giving a smile

'Huh.. Now you're just copying my jokes' replied Cole, while having a smile on his face

Both of them started walking towards each other, wielding their weapon in their hands. Cole immediately used his ice jump and attempted to thunder drop at Reaper

'Again?' said Reaper, while rolling over to dodge Cole's attack

'Not this time!' yelled out Cole while firing an ice grenade mid air, freezing Reaper, and completing his attack with a full on thunder drop right next to Reaper, knocking him away from Cole

'Now, take this!' yelled out Cole, calling in an ionic storm right at Reaper. The storm being bright enough to illuminate the entire city, caught everyone by surprise

'Holy crap! That is something!' yelled out Gray

Cole then aimed his amp at Reaper, who's body was regenerating.

'I gotta say, you did catch me surprise' said Reaper, standing right behind Cole, aiming his palm at him

'Huh.. A clone..' mumbled Cole, while lowering his amp, and watching Reaper's body on the ground disappear

'You're not the only one who learned new tricks Cole' said Reaper, while gathering lightning around his arm, preparing an attack

Cole immediately turned around and ducked, dodging Reaper's attack, followed by delivering a swift uppercut. He then followed the attack by using his lightning tether to catch hold of Reaper and slammed him onto the ground. Before Cole could attack, Reaper immediately threw a napalm grenade, which Cole dodged, giving time for Reaper to recover

Both Cole and Reaper were face to face once again

'This is some fight..' said Laxus, right after which he noticed Cole gathering energy around his arms

'Here you go!' yelled out Cole while unleashing an ionic vortex straight towards Reaper

'Huh.. Two can play that game Cole' replied Reaper, while gathering energy and unleashing his own ionic vortex

'What the hell is that magic?' yelled out Laxus, as he watched the two vortexes head straight towards themselves. The twisters combined, creating an even more powerful ionic vortex

'Damn it!' yelled out Cole, using his lightning tether on a nearby building, holding on to prevent himself from getting dragged in. Reaper did the same thing and the two waited for the vortex to subside

'You're gonna have to do better than that!' yelled out Reaper, while firing a couple of scythe bolts at Cole. Who immediately armed his frost shield

Reaper then fired a tripwire rocket towards Cole, who used his ice jump to dodge the attack

'You ain't going anywhere!' yelled out Reaper, using his firebird strike to close in towards Cole, who was airborne. Cole used a graviton blast to halt Reaper mid air, but to his surprise, Reaper halted before that and fired a napalm rocket at point blank range, knocking away Cole

As Cole tried to stand up after the attack, he noticed Reaper readying himself for an attack, as Cole struggled to get up, Reaper called an ionic storm, directly at Cole. The storm was fierce, a flash of crimson red lightning illuminated even the darkest areas of the city

'Oh no..' whispered Lissana, after looking at the intensity of the attack

Cole was lying on the ground, with his palm raised upward. Reaper noticed Cole's hand having a mark left over from the attack

'So you tried absorbing most of the attack, clever' said Reaper, as he watched Cole stand up after the attack

'This fight won't end, maybe it's time I gave it everything I got!' yelled out Reaper, while gathering lightning around his body, while making a T pose

Cole braced himself as the ground began shaking around him. Flickers of red lightning began erupting around Reaper, right after which an aura of fire began to surround his body

'The beast!' exclaimed Cole, as Reaper began unleashing the powers of the beast within himself. His eyes having the same fire as that of the Beast

'Time to end this Cole!' yelled out Reaper, as he began pulling Cole towards him with his power

'Crap!' yelled out Cole, while using his lightning tether and grabbed hold of a building, preventing Reaper from pulling him in

'That won't save you Cole!' yelled out Reaper, after firing a barrage of fireballs straight towards Cole, who was airborne

'My shield won't protect me from those, I gotta act fast!' Cole used his lightning tether towards the ground and immediately grounded himself, followed by using his frost dash to dodge the attack

'I took down the beast before, and I can sure as hell do it again!' yelled out Cole, firing a couple of Alpha rockets at Reaper, and charging in towards him

Reaper swiftly moved around the attacks, but was then greeted by a swift blow on the left of his chest by Cole with his amp

'Take this!' yelled out Cole after delivering successive blows with the amp and attempted to finish off his combo with an Alpha rocket at point blank range, only for his hand to get caught by Reaper before he could fire

'Uh uh.. This is how you do it' said Reaper as he grinned and aimed his hand at Cole, he then fired a Napalm rocket at Cole's chest, blasting him away from Reaper

'It's curtains for you Cole!' yelled out Reaper as he called in another ionic storm at Cole, this time being even stronger than before.

'Oh no! Cole!' yelled out Master Makarov, as the lightning strike completely blind sighted everyone from the battle

'That attack, No.. Cole.. You're not gonna lose like this!' thought Erza, as she attempted to walk, with her injured leg

'Damn.. That's some attack, I better go and see it for myself..' said Gajeel, holding his chest with his right arm, being injured from the fight with Sting

As the dust settled from Reaper's attack, Cole was lying on the ground with his shirt completely torn

'Is this the end for Fairy Tail, has Reaper triumphed over Cole McGrath. It would appear so folks.. Wait a second.. Unbelievable! This is something extra ordinary!' exclaimed the announcer, as he watched Cole move around and attempt to stand up

'That should have knocked you out.. But oh well, you want some more?' taunted Reaper, as Cole stood up, and was on his knees

'I.. Ain't giving up this fight..' said Cole.. As he finally stood on his feet, almost falling over trying to balance himself

Reaper grinned, and then noticed some markings on Cole's arm

'That's something new' he said, as Cole raised his right arm

'Is that... Fairy Glitter? How does he have that? Does he even know how to use it?' question Master Makarov as Cole wielded one of his guild's most powerful spells in his arm

'Master Mavis, you gave it to him didn't you?' asked Laxus

'I did' she replied, as she looked at Cole

'Well, you did tell him how to use it right?' asked Master Makarov

'That's something we'll be seeing for ourselves, I was keen for our guild to succeed, I armed Cole with Fairy Glitter' she replied with a mischievous smile on her face

Cole held his right arm, as the markings started glowing, he then raised his arm as energy began overflowing around him

'What is this?' thought Reaper, right after which he noticed Cole place his other hand on the markings, draining energy from it, making the markings fade away

'He.. He absorbed the spell, instead of using it?!' exclaimed Master Makarov in awe

As the markings completely faded away, Cole suddenly had a burst of bright, blue lightning around him. His eyes began glowing white, with white stripes beginning to line his arms and torso

'Would you look at that..' said Reaper, while retaining his Beast form, and charging his entire body with an aura of fire and red lightning

'The Fairy Conduit!' exclaimed Master Mavis with a smile

'Huh? What's that?' asked Master Makarov

'The name for his transformation!' she replied

Cole and Reaper had a stare-down at one another, with Reaper in his Beast mode and Cole with his newly found Fairy Conduit mode. The battle for the number 1 guild of Fiore was about to reach it's final stage!

'Let's finish this, right here, right now!' yelled out Cole as he held his amp in his right hand and pointed it at Reaper

'Couldn't agree more!' replied Reaper, wielding his scythe


	29. Chapter 29 : Beginning of The End

Cole slammed his fist onto the ground, as lightning began to surround his entire body, marking the completion of his transformation, the Fairy Conduit

'That's a new look for you Cole!' taunted Reaper while gathering lightning around his own body, simultaneously covering himself with the flames of the beast

Cole looked at Reaper in anger and fired a magnum bolt, this time, his lightning being a lot brighter than normal. Reaper grunted and fired back a scythe bolt, resulting in their attacks canceling out each other

He then noticed Cole standing right in front of him, Cole immediately swung his amp, to which Reaper brought out his scythe and blocked the attack

'You've gotten fast..!' said Reaper, as he attempted to fire a lightning bolt, which Cole dodged by rolling away and firing an alpha rocket.

'Out of my way!' yelled out Cole, right as he stood up and fired three alpha rockets simultaneously

Reaper gave a smile, as he stood still and and waited for the rockets to close in. He waited for the perfect moment to jump, but was surprised to see Cole standing right behind him.

'Here ya go!' taunted Cole as he fired an alpha rocket right behind him, knocking him into the other 3, causing a huge explosion

'Did he finish it?' asked Laxus

'Unlikely..' replied Master Makarov

'I'm not done yet Cole!' yelled out Reaper, as he emerged from the smoke, levitating from the ground

'Come with everything you've got!' yelled out Cole

'Oh now you've asked for it!' said Reaper, as he looked at Cole straight in the eyes. Reaper began to power himself up, causing the ground to shake, as bright crimson red lightning began to strike down near him. Cole stood motionless, with his eyes completely white the lightning aura around him growing fiercer and fiercer

'If this keeps up, who knows what will happen..' thought Ursa as she watched the sky turn darker and darker, with clouds blocking out the sun, and series of lightning flashing around

Cole and Reaper then dashed towards each other and got engaged in a serious fist fight, each of their blows dishing out tremendous amount of lightning on impact

Cole and Reaper took out their melee weapons and charged onto one another, Cole used his ice jump and was about to thunder drop on Reaper, only to be halted by Reaper's control of gravity, granted by the powers of the beast

'You're mine!' yelled out Reaper as he watched Cole struggle mid air and attempted to fire a skull bolt

Cole immediately used his frost shield to block Reaper's attack. He then fired an ice grenade onto Reaper, forcing him to evade, negating his control over gravity

As Reaper stood up, he watched Cole closing in at a very high speed. He stood still and waited for Cole to come by and as Cole was inches close to him, he attempted a punch blast, but Cole successfully used his ice jump to evade his attack.

'I know all your moves!' taunted Reaper, using his lightning tether to pin him down the ground once he was airborne, surprising Cole

'Damn it..' Cole grunted, as he got pulled onto the ground.

'Now I'll put you to sleep' said Reaper, as he aimed his palm at Cole, who was standing up after Reaper's counter attack

Reaper immediately fired a skull bolt, which Cole dodged by quickly rolling over and shooting right back at Reaper

'Agh.. You son of a!' yelled Reaper in anger as he got struck, after which he was struck on his chest by Cole's amp

Cole swung his amp ferociously, delivering powerful blows, after which he finished it off by sticking a sticky grenade onto Reaper and knocking him away with an alpha rocket

'I'll finish this!' yelled out Cole, as he was about to call an ionic storm, only to be interrupted by Reaper striking him with repeated scythe bolts

As Cole attempted to block out the incoming attacks, he noticed how Reaper stood still, taking the explosion by his sticky grenade, like it was nothing

'It'll take more than that Cole!' taunted Reaper, while firing back

Cole stood his ground and noticed Reaper firing

'Now, try and stop this!' yelled out Reaper, while firing repeated hell fire rockets.

Cole just stood still and blocked his attacks with his frost shield.

'I can't.. Keep this up much longer!' thought Cole, after which an idea struck his mind

Cole was on his knees, as he kept blocking Reaper's barrage of hell fire rockets. He held the shield with his left hand and punched the ground with his right, sending out spikes of ice onto Reaper, forcing him to jump and evade the attack

Cole immediately saw this as his opportunity, he fired 5 rockets aimed straight at Reaper, who used his firebird strike to evade the attack and close in.

'That was a miss!' yelled out Reaper, as he closed in and used his thunder drop right on top of Cole

Cole immediately rolled over, narrowly dodging the attack and then struck Reaper with an alpha bolt

As Reaper was about to attack, the five rockets Cole misfired earlier began converging towards Reaper. He looked up to see the rockets explode at him, one after the other

'Say goodnight!' taunted Cole, calling in an ionic storm directly onto Reaper's position.

The lightning storm was bright, and fierce, much powerful than anything Cole had brought on before. Everyone at the stadium covered their eyes, due to the sheer intensity of the lightning Cole had summoned

'Man.. That's some power..' thought Laxus, as he covered his eyes with his forearm

'The device has been charged completely, we have all the celestial keys, shall we commence operations ?' asked one of the guards to the princess

'We need more time!' she replied, as she watched the battle between Cole and Reaper

'But the device has been charged, we don't know if it'll stay that way long enough' said one of the guards working

'I understand, but I still need more time' she replied

She noticed Cole standing, as the smoke from his previous attack cleared off.

'Is.. This it?' she thought to herself, right after which she was surprised to see someone walk out of the smoke

'He's still standing..' she whispered

'This.. Is ridiculous' Cole thought, as he watched Reaper walk out of the smoke, almost unharmed

'How on earth did he survive that?' thought Laxus

'What's the matter? You don't look so happy!' said Reaper with a smile on his face

Cole grunted, as he immediately dashed right towards Reaper and delivered a series of punches. Reaper then blocked away some of his punches and kicked him in the abdomen, stunning him for a few seconds, after which he knocked Cole away with a punch blast, and followed his attack by sending a hell fire rocket

Cole recovered mid air and noticed Reaper's attack closing in, he immediately used his ice jump to dodge the attack.

'Darn you!' yelled out Cole as he fired magnum bolts straight at Reaper, who rolled around to dodge Cole's attack

'Come on! Is that the best you got?' yelled out Reaper

Cole stood on the ground, with his amp on his right hand

Reaper grinned and took out his scythe

'Let's dance!' yelled out Cole as he dashed at Reaper and attempted to strike, only for his amp to strike Reaper's scythe. The striking between the two weapons let out sparks of lightning even stronger than before. As the two were engaged in a fierce combat, Cole took a step back and fired a magnum bolt, stunning Reaper for a few seconds

'Take this!' yelled out Cole, striking Reaper with his amp repeatedly, ending his assault with an alpha rocket at point blank range, immediately vaporizing Reaper's body

'W.. What the?' thought Cole, as he looked around and was surprised to see Reaper nowhere to be found

Suddenly, the ground beneath him began to rumble, right after which Reaper emerged from the ground and caught Cole by choking him and lifting him against the ground

'That.. Was a clone..' said Cole, struggling to breathe

'Bingo, your attack did leave a big dent on me, I needed time to recover, so I sent a clone to buy myself some time!' replied Reaper as he brought his fist closer to Cole

'This is over, for you, and your guild!' exclaimed Reaper, seconds before he was going to knock Cole out

Cole closed his eyes and focused his energy on his body, releasing a burst of whitish blue lightning, stunning Reaper, forcing him to let go of Cole

'You never fail to surprise me!' taunted Reaper as he took his stance and stood his ground, while watching Cole stand up, with his eyes completely white from his transformation

'It's time we end this!' said Cole as he charged towards Reaper with his fists covered in a light blue lightning

'Here I come!' yelled back Reaper, charging straight towards Cole

Both of their fists collided once again, sending out a massive pulse of lightning across the area, cracking the ground underneath them

'The device, it's starting to emit electricity!' exclaimed one of the guards

'We thought it was ready before, but now it's complete!' added the other

'Inform the princess at once, we don't know how long we can keep this device at this state!' said one of the members

'Princess I think you should..' said the guard, interrupted by the princess, who raised her hand, ordering him to stop

'What I say is final, I don't want any more interruptions' she replied with a bold tone

'Yes your highness' replied the guard, while leaving her room

Cole rolled around to dodge Reaper's attack, he noticed how the white bands on his body started flickering

'Damn it, I can't keep this up for too long' he thought, as he fired back at Reaper

'I should go all in!' he thought, as he used his frost dash to close in towards Reaper.

'Big mistake!' yelled out Reaper, who waited for Cole to come close, after which he used his ionic drain.

Cole immediately used his ice jump, putting him inches away from Reaper's ionic drain.

'Impossible!' yelled out Reaper as he looked Cole airborne

'Say goodnight!' yelled out Cole as he charged his right hand and came in towards Reaper, punching him straight at the face.

Cole's Fairy Conduit form faded, he started breathing heavily, as the smoke cleared around him, he noticed Reaper lying on the ground, with his body regenerating

Cole aimed his palm directly at Reaper's face

'Give up' said Cole, as lightning flickered from his palm

Reaper grunted in anger, then he looked around, to see Gray, Ursa, Gajeel and Erza watching from a distance. He gave a smile, right after which he whispered to himself

'I'm sorry Frosh' he whispered, after which he looked at Cole

'You win McGrath, I give up' said Reaper, making Cole power down, bringing a smile to every Fairy Tail member in the arena

'Fairy Tail has done it! They have won this year's Grand Magic Games! With 1 point ahead of Team Sabertooth! Unbelievable! They've managed to beat the odds with all 5 of their contestants standing, for the first time in the history of the games, this is spectacular!' yelled out the announcer, crowning Fairy Tail as champions of the grand magic games, followed by a loud cheer from the crowd

'They did it! We won! I'm so happy!' yelled out Master Makarov

'Good job Cole' thought Master Mavis as she looked at him

'Looks like our work here is done huh..' said Erza as she walked towards Cole

'Erza.. Yeah.. We won!' replied Cole with a smile

Cole then turned around and noticed Reaper lying on the ground

'Hey..' he said, catching his attention

Cole extended his hand towards Reaper, surprising him

'That was a good match' said Cole, giving a half smile while extending his hand

Reaper grunted stood by himself, after which he just stared at Cole

'Yeah, some guild you've got there' replied Reaper

Cole didn't understand what he meant, but acknowledged Reaper's anger.

'The prediction was correct, it needs to be done, activate the device, and open the gate!' ordered the Princess

'Yes your highness' replied one of the guards, as the took the device outdoors. The device, flickering with lightning was kept on a pedestal, seconds after which, it was activated, sending a massive white beam into the sky

'That energy.. No way in hell!' exclaimed Cole as he turned around and looked at a massive beam of light penetrating into the sky

'Cole..' said Reaper, as he pointed at the beacon of light

'It's the RFI!' exclaimed both of them simultaneously


	30. Chapter 30 : The War Begins

'It's the RFI!' exclaimed both Cole and Reaper, after which the two glanced at each other in confusion

'Cole.. What's going on?' asked Erza as she approached him

'It's.. The RFI, the same device, I activated, before I ended up here' replied Cole, surprising Erza and the others

Reaper grunted, then paused and looked at his hands and then turned around and looked at Cole's body

'Cole!' yelled out Reaper, catching Cole's attention

'The RFI, It isn't killing us' said Reaper, surprising Cole

'Huh.. Now that you mention it, it definitely isn't' replied Cole

'I need answers, I'm getting to the source of this!' yelled out Reaper, using his firebird strike to fly away

'Wait!' yelled out Cole, stretching his arm, then suddenly falling on his knees in pain

'Damn, that fight really took a lot from me, it's easy for him to walk away just like that, not for me' Cole though, as he stood up and looked at the beam of light illuminating the sky

* * *

'What's that over there at the sky? It's something I've never seen before!' yelled out Meredy, while standing near Ultear and Jellal

'It's coming near the castle, just as Reaper told me, this is bad' replied Jellal

'What do you suggest we do?' asked Ultear out of curiosity

'We need to figure out what that is, and put an end to it' replied Jellal, after which the team headed towards the castle

* * *

The Castle was being raided by Team Natsu, who were on a rescue mission for Lucy, after taking down most of the guards of the castle, Natsu and the others stormed into the rooms in search for her. They successful in finding her, but her celestial keys had been taken away.

'What happened to your keys Lucy?' asked Natsu

'The Princess took them for me, they told me they need it for the eclipse cannon' replied Lucy

'The eclipse canon?' questioned Mira

'I was skeptical myself, but they were really desperate' she replied

'So, where do we head now?' asked Natsu

'I was supposed to be there, in front of the eclipse gate before it opens

'Then let's head over there right now!' replied Natsu, seconds after which a shadow emerged into the room

'What's the big idea?' yelled out Natsu

'I'm sorry, I just cannot let you pass, Natsu Dragneel!' yelled out a man, emerging out from the shadows

'Is that.. Rogue?!' exclaimed Mira in surprise

* * *

Reaper was quickly maneuvering himself through the rooftops with his fire bird and lightning tether. He then paused to look at the beam emerging out from the RFI growing bigger and bigger.

'Damn it.. The RFI is about to blow up' he thought, as he ran even quicker

'I'm curious as to what this device is supposed to do Arcadios' said Hisui as she looked at it, with lightning sparking around it

'The one from the future told us it will weaken the dragons, giving us the perfect opportunity to use the Eclipse Canon' replied Arcadios

'Shouldn't we open the eclipse gate and ready the cannon before the dragons arrive?' asked Hisui out of curiosity

'You make a valid point, we should proceed with it right now!' replied Arcadios, after which they started walking towards the eclipse gate

* * *

Cole recovered himself and explained the situation to his guild mates. He then turned around and looked at the beam touching the edges of the sky.

'Is it just me, or is it getting bigger by the second' he thought

'What do you suggest we do Cole?' asked Erza as she looked at him. Cole used his ice jump and got on top of a building

'Stick together, I'm going to find out who's responsible for this!' he replied while looking back and then using his frost dash to swiftly move away

'You're Rogue alright, you look completely different' said Natsu

'I am Rogue, but I'm from the future, a terrible one' replied the man, turning out to be Rogue from the future

'You're from the future? What happened back there?' asked Mira

'You see, Dragons had attacked the city in my timeline, the date 7/7/7 also marks the day of the Dragon King festival, the dragons arrived, and not a single one of us stood a chance. They completely overpowered us. The only way to take them down is by activating the Eclipse cannon, that will give us a fighting chance

'But that's exactly what we want!' replied Lucy

'Oh, but it's not that simple' said Rogue, confusing everyone

'What do you mean?' asked Natsu

'In my future, someone came in the way of the activation of the eclipse canon' he said

'And that someone...' he added with a pause

'Was Lucy Heartfelia!' yelled out Future Rogue, firing a wave of dark energy at Lucy, who was just standing clueless

Juvia stepped in and blocked the attack with a water wall

'What do you mean I'll stop it, I'll never do such a thing!' yelled out Lucy

'My objective here is to terminate you, Lucy Heartfelia' replied Future Rogue

'What makes you think I'm gonna let you get away with that!' yelled out Natsu, throwing a punch straight at Future Rogue's face

'Lucy, go! I'll handle this!' exclaimed Natsu, gathering flames in his right fist

Lucy nodded and fled the room, heading towards the eclipse gate.

'It's time, open the gate now!' exclaimed the Princess, right after which the powers of the zodiacs were used to open up the eclipse gate

Just as the door was opening inch by inch, the RFI started to flicker massive amounts of lightning

'What's happening?!' exclaimed Princess Hisui

'The device seems to be powering up even more!' replied Arcadios

Just as the RFI was about to explode, Reaper quickly held onto it and slammed it on the ground, and then finally broke it open with his scythe, sending a huge pulse, knocking everyone gathered off their feet

'Reaper?! What do you think you're doing?' asked Arcadios in a loud tone

'What am I doing? What am I DOING? You're the one to talk! You didn't tell me you had the god damn RFI!' replied Reaper, being furious over the secret

'The.. RFI? Is that what you called the device?' questioned Princess Hisui

'You better start telling me why you activated it Princess' replied Reaper while aiming his palm at her

'You fool! We needed that device to weaken the dragons, so we could shoot them down with the Eclipse Canon!' said Arcadios

'Weaken dragons? What idiot gave you that idea?' asked Reaper

'Look, we've opened the Eclipse gate, now we shall prepare ourselves to fend off the dragon invasion' said Arcadios, right after which Reaper looked at the eclipse gate opening

Suddenly, as the gate began opening, Lucy began yelling at the top of her voice

'Shut it down! Close the gates!' she yelled out, surprising everyone

'It's too dangerous, My instincts are telling me this is going to be bad! Please shut it down!' she added

'Why would she want to shut down the gates?' asked Arcadios

Reaper caught Arcadios's collar and lifted him up, with his palm covered with lightning, aimed at Arcadios's face

'Listen, you already got the wrong idea of the RFI, shut the gate down now!' he threatened

Princess Hisui panicked, she felt helpless, and then at the last moment, ordered to close the eclipse gate. But, all of the sudden, before the gate could close, a claw emerged.

Dragon comes out of the Gate and roars, sending those nearby flying. The Dragon goes on to cause more destruction, causing those far away to wonder what is happening. As another Dragon comes out, Lucy asks how the Gate can be closed and is pointed to a pedestal near the Gate

As she tries to get to the lever, Lucy is pushed back by the exuding Dragons power. Just as another Dragon emerges, Lucy manages to grab the handle, stating that she can use her Celestial Spirit powers to close the door.

As more and more dragons began emerging out, Reaper tries to subdue them by firing an alpha rocket repeatedly. The dragons, now enraged, charge towards Reaper. He grabs Hisui and Arcadios and uses his fire bird strike to move away quickly

'So this was your plan?' asked Reaper as he looked at Dragons entering from the gate

'Heh.. Opened a frickin portal to the past' thought Reaper, after which he turned his attention towards Hisui

'You're crying?' he asked her

'I.. I've ruined everything' she replied, with tears rolling down her eyes

'Don't be too hard on yourself, we all make questionable choices' said Reaper, while standing up and looking at the dragons coming in

'This.. Power...' Reaper thought with his eyes wide open and looked around

'It's coming from over there..' he looked at the corner of the gate, from where he watched a figure come out and quickly vanish

'I'm definitely not seeing things' Reaper quickly drew out his scythe

'Lucy, can you shut it down?' yelled out Reaper

'I...' she thought for a few moments, after which an idea struck her mind

'The keys were used to open the gate in the first place, I'll use them to close the gate' she said

'Well whatever you do, do it fast!' yelled out Reaper, charging towards the dragons headed out into the city

* * *

'Dragons are attacking the city, was this your plan all along?' asked Natsu, while fighting future Rogue

'My plan was simple, I needed to make my own dragon army, so that I can defeat Acnologia, once and for all

'Acnologia.. You mean.. (Natsu remembers the incident on Tenrou Island)

'Yes indeed, with an army of dragons, I'll be able to defeat him once and for all' replied Future Rogue

Natsu just got furious over Future Rogue and bursted towards him in anger. Both of them began exchanging blows as their fight progressed

* * *

'What the hell is going on?' thought Cole as he stood still on a rooftop, and looked at the Dragons rampaging through the city

'The RFI was shut down, but.. Where the hell did these dragons come from? This is bad!' Cole kept thinking, after which he noticed Lucy and Yukino standing with Mira, Wendy and Juvia

'What are they doing down there! It's too dangerous!' Cole thought as he leaped into the scene

'Cole!?' exclaimed Wendy in shock

'Guys! This is bad! We need to get to a safer place and think about what's going on!' said Cole in haste

'Cole, there's no time to explain what's going on.. Look out!' yelled Wendy, as she saw a giant rock headed towards them

Cole brought out his frost shield and braced himself, only to watch the rock get vaporized by a blast.

'Try not to get killed down there!' yelled out Reaper while using his lightning thrusters

'Reaper..' Cole whispered, as he watched Reaper use his fire bird strike and battle against a rock dragon.

He used his ffrebird strike to land on top of the dragon's head, where he began to fire hell-fire rockets directly onto the dragon's head, forcing the dragon to attempt and shake Reaper off. The dragon swiped with it's claws, making Reaper jump and fire a fireball directly on the Dragon's face, knocking it down

'Heh.. Big ass filthy lizard' taunted Reaper, while being airborne with his static thrusters, seconds after which he was brutally knocked away by an attack from behind.

The attack was strong enough to send him almost a kilometer away, knocking him straight into a building, where he was just slammed against the wall

'A sucker punch..!' grunted Reaper, while standing up and looking at the Rock dragon stand up with another dragon behind it

'Oh you ain't getting away that...' Reaper yelled in anger, then paused

'It's that feeling again.. That power..' Reaper stood for a moment

'From there..' Reaper looked at an empty field near the borders of the city

* * *

'The dragons, they're headed this way!' yelled out Wendy

Cole fired a few alpha rockets, catching their attention.

'I'm not doing enough damage... I can't go all out with these many dragons out there...' Cole thought, as he looked at the others

'We need to get out of here, right now!' Cole ordered

'But we can't, we need to close the gate before more dragons show up!' replied Wendy

Cole looked around, and then took a deep breath, after which he used his ice jump and fired a couple of Alpha rockets at the incoming dragons

'Yeah that's right!' yelled out Cole, after which he swiftly moved away from the others

'He's distracting them, now's our chance!'

Lucy and Yukino combine their celestial magic, and open all 12 zodiac gates, bringing out all the zodiac spirits, which aid them in closing the gate

As the gate is closed, they're confronted by a dragon which Cole failed to distract

'It's Zirconis, the Jade Dragon!' yelled out Princess Hisui.

As the dragon was about to attack, a bolt of lightning struck the dragon, forcing it to halt

'Glad I could make it in time!' said Laxus

'It's Laxus!' exclaimed Lucy with a smile

'Yeah, the other 7 dragons are causing a havoc alright, took me a while to find you guys' he added

'There are 7 more?' asked Wendy

'Yeah, and the others are there in the city with the other guild members' he replied

'So this definitely is a war' whispered Juvia

* * *

Reaper stepped into the field, where he felt the powerful source of magic

'I know you're out here, you can stop hiding' he said in a bold tone


	31. Chapter 31 : Uninvited

The war between the dragons and the wizards of Fairy Tail had commenced. Everyone had gathered in groups in an attempt to fend off the invasion brought by the Dragons, who entered through the Eclipse gate

Cole was moving through the rooftops, making two dragons chase him down as he distracted them from Lucy and the others, who were successful in preventing the other dragons from entering Crocus

As the dragons chased Cole, he noticed how the other dragons were rampaging throughout the city

'Damn it, this doesn't look so good!' Cole thought as he turned around and looked at the dragons getting close to him

He fired a couple of alpha rockets, slowing the dragons down, but not doing any significant damage

The dragon swiped it's claw, forcing Cole to use his ice jump to evade. Cole landed on the dragon's arm and sprinted straight towards it's head. The dragon attempted to shake him off. But Cole held on. He then dug his amp straight into the Dragon's skull, shocking it considerably. As he was doing this, the other Rock dragon charged up an attack

'Oh.. Crap!' Cole yelled out as the dragon fired a huge boulder at him. Cole immediately used his ice jump, but got hit narrowly on his legs, swirling him mid air.

The other dragon then swiped it's claw, this time getting a direct hit, sending Cole flying away into the inner depths of the city

Cole falls onto a street,the ice covering his body starts cracking as he shakes his head and attempts to stand

'Glad I could cover myself up, it would have been a nasty fall' Cole thought as he felt dizzy while trying to balance himself. He then falls on his knees as his body regenerates. As he lifts his head up, he oversees a giant dragon flying in the sky.

'Just.. How many are there..' he thought, after which he noticed Natsu on top of the dragon engaged in a battle with Future Rogue

'Natsu?' he thought, soon after which he shook his head and used his ice jump to get on top of a building. From there, Cole waited and watched as Natsu and Rogue were exchanging blows between one another. Cole aimed his palm and waited for the perfect moment to strike.

'Fire dragon: Roar!' yelled out Natsu as he fired a wave of flames at Rogue, who jumped to dodge the attack, followed by punching away Natsu in the abdomen, knocking him towards the back of the dragon, where he held on to prevent himself from falling over.

'It's over Salamander, you and your friends will be the first to fall!' said Future Rogue, as he was about to knock Natsu off.

Cole then lowered his palm, and called out an ionic storm straight onto Future Rogue's position, surprising him and Natsu, who then looked down to see Cole calling out the attack.

Future Rogue, paralyzed after the attack, was on his knees, as he watched Natsu come up to him.

'You're gonna call off these dragons!' said Natsu as he had a fire burning on his fist and lifted Future Rogue by grabbing his collar

Future Rogue then kicked him straight on his chest, this time successfully knocking away Natsu from the flying Dragon.

'No, Natsu!' yelled out Cole as he used his ice jump and caught Natsu with a lightning hook

'Ahh.. This thing hurts man!' yelled out Natsu as he felt the lightning hook zapping his body

'Well it was the only thing I could come up with!' replied Cole as he landed with Natsu landing next to him

Future Rogue looked at both of them atop the dragon, hovering in the sky. Cole narrowed his eyelids and aimed his right palm straight at Future Rogue

'Cole McGrath, I really did enjoy killing you' said Future Rogue with a smile

Cole felt surprised as he didn't understand a thing

'It's a shame that little girl got away too, I would have killed her as well' he added, lighting up Cole's eyes

'Wendy.. That means.. He attacked her.. And..' Cole thought as he stared at the ground

'You..' Cole said, as lightning started to build up around him

'Oh, did I snap a nerve?' taunted Future Rogue

'She suffers because of you!' yelled out Cole in anger as he fired three rockets simultaneously. Future Rogue ordered his Dragon to dodge the attacks by moving away. Cole then used his ice jump and fired an alpha bolt straight at Rogue.

'That won't do a thing to me, I've faced much worse!' taunted Rogue when suddenly, he turned around to see all the rockets converge towards him, knocking him off the dragon

'Rruuaaaggh!' yelled out Cole while using his ice jump and his lightning hook to grab hold of Rogue

Natsu watched as Cole and Future Rogue landed on the ground. Natsu attempted to jump, but noticed the dragon turning around.

'I better keep that thing away from him!' Natsu thought as he used his fire dragon roar, forcing the dragon away

Cole immediately sprinted towards Rogue and used his amp to deal repeated strikes, each one more powerful than the last hit. He then struck a blow with his amp on his right hand and immediately froze Rogue's body with his left hand and followed up by firing an Alpha rocket, shattering the ice and knocking away Future Rogue a couple of meters from him

Cole started walking towards Rogue slowly, while holding his amp in his right hand. Rogue got up and attempted to stand, but could only crawl as a result of the injuries. He then raised his hand, making the dragon sweep in.

'Oh no you don't!' yelled out Natsu as he jumped atop of the dragon as it moved in simultaneously

The dragon caught Rogue with it's claw and moved away, before Cole could fire a magnum bolt

'I'm tired with all these interruptions, it's time I send in an army to stop them' he thought, as he signaled his dragon to attack, it does so by producing eggs and sending them plummeting into the streets below. Upon hitting the ground, the eggs hatch into small Draconian entities.

'Those eggs are everywhere' Cole thought as he watched the eggs land onto the streets

* * *

Meanwhile, elsewhere on the streets, Erza, along with Master Makarov and a few members of other guilds watched as the eggs hatched into small dragons.

'Fight them, don't let them get innocent civilians!' yelled out Erza as she drew out her sword and charged, engaging herself in a fight against hundreds of mini dragons, roughly the same size as that of an average human. Some of the dragons started shooting out magic beams of energy, forcing Erza to deflect them with her sword.

As Erza along with the other members fought on for almost an hour, the mini dragons kept coming, and the other wizards felt exhausted from the constant conflict. Erza noticed how some of them were about to collapse

'We can still fight!' yelled out Erza while raising her sword in the air

Others who rallied behind her felt inspired, and kept battling, when suddenly, a swarm came in.

Erza charged in without hesitation and fought, getting separated from the other wizards who were fighting alongside her

Erza then looked around to see herself surrounded by the swarm of mini dragons. She fought, killing off three of them, but got struck in her leg. She then looked up straight into the sky and dropped her sword, as the swarm circled around her.

Suddenly, she looked up to see Cole come in and use his ionic freeze, freezing all of the swarm around him in large ice spikes

'You alright?' said Cole as he turned around and looked at Erza, who barely had the strength to stand up

'Ye..ah... I'm...' she replied as she struggled while attempting to stand up

'Hold on' Cole said, as he used his pulse heal, to relieve her of pain

'That should do it' he said, right after which Erza stood up and flexed her legs

'Thank you.. Cole' she said, with a smile on her face

'Don't thank me yet, there are 7 dragons, including that big boy over there' said Cole as he pointed at the Dragon which Future Rogue was on

'What do you suggest we do?' asked Erza

'I.. Don't know.. Those dragons are really tough, we need a lot of firepower if we're gonna have to beat them' replied Cole

'I think that guy above is the one controlling them, we'll have to take him down' he added, while pointing at Future Rogue

'With all those hatch-lings rampaging through the city, we'll need to have our hopes on Natsu' replied Erza

'I need to find Reaper' said Cole, surprising Erza

'What do you need him for?' asked Erza curiously

'There's no time, Erza I'm going to find him, meanwhile you regroup with the others fighting off the hatchlings' said Cole, to which Erza nodded

* * *

Ursa and Gray, along with a few other guild members were fighting alongside one another as they fended off the hatchlings.

'Scatter Shot!' yelled out Ursa, firing bolts of lightning at the hatchlings behind Gray.

'Nice work kid!' said Gray as he used his ice magic to clear out a wave of the mini dragons, after which more kept coming.

'Guess there's a lot more where that came from!' yelled out Gray, after which everyone was on their guard

* * *

'Hmph, so you were hiding' taunted Reaper, as a man emerged out from the darkness into the open field, with only the light from the moon illuminating them partially

'What a strange realm, to be greeted by a man having the face of a skull' said the man

'Oh, so you ain't from this part of town too' said Reaper, while stretching his body

'I would assume you mean you're not from here as well' he replied while staring at Reaper

'In a way, yeah' said Reaper, as he gave a smile

'Hmph, now then if you'll let me be, it'll be for your own good' said the man, as he turned around

Reaper fired an alpha rocket, missing the man's face, and hitting a tree, causing it to burn, illuminating the area. The man turned around to have long dark blue hair, wearing a cape while being shirtless and having torn shorts.

'They don't sell shirts in your place?' joked Reaper

'I would assume you want to get in my way' said the man, as he narrowed his eyelids and looked at Reaper in anger

'Oh, you finally understand why I'm here, I can't just let you roam around here unchecked now can I?' said Reaper, while aiming his palm at the man's face

'If you're gonna stand in my way, so be it!' yelled out the man as he fired a huge beam of energy onto Reaper, who could barely dodge it as it came so fast, resulting in him taking a direct hit, vaporizing his body

'I never thought he'd be that foolish' said the man, right after which he got struck on the back by Reaper's scythe, knocking him away, followed by a couple of Hellfire rockets onto him as he attempted to recover mid air

As the smoke cleared from Reaper's attack, he looked at the man, standing firm, with narrowed eyelids, fuming with anger

'You sent a duplicate of yourself, I'll have to admit that was smart' said the man

Reaper just grinned as he started gathering lightning around his body, making the ground around them shake vigorously

'Impressive, you do have a lot of power within you' said the man, as he watched Reaper's body covered with a red lightning aura

'I need to know your name before I end your life' said the man, making Reaper smile

'You can call me Reaper, whoever you are' replied Reaper as he was about to charge straight at the man

'My name is Acnologia, and I'll be the last person you'll ever see before you die!' yelled out Acnologia, as he charged straight at Reaper


	32. Chapter 32 : Invisible Strings

Reaper dashed with his fist charged, straight towards Acnologia, who was waiting for him to close in. He gave a smile as Reaper came close and was about to attack. Reaper grinned and fired a rocket underneath himself, launching him towards the air, dodging Acnologia's attack and following it by taking out his scythe and slashing it straight from caught hold of his scythe, surprising Reaper

'Now now, let's not get hasty' taunted Acnologia, right after which Reaper passed a current through the metal body of the scythe, shocking Acnologia as he held it, forcing him to let go.

'Grghhh, You will pay for that!' yelled out Acnologia as he recovered, to see Reaper firing a couple of hellfire rockets.

Acnologia grinned and lifted his palm, tanking the attacks from Reaper as if it was nothing.

'This guy took those attacks head on' Reaper thought, right after which he started cracking his fists and gave a smile

'You seem to be amused, well I'll just have to wipe it off your face' said Acnologia, with a devilish smirk on his face

'Bring it on!' yelled out Reaper, gathering lightning around his body and charging straight at Acnologia. He used his firebird strike to close in, and noticed Acnologia about to launch an attack. Reaper quickly rolled to his side, dodging the attack and was about to fire an alpha rocket, right after which he was kicked with brutal force, knocking him meters away from Acnologia.

As Reaper recovered mid air, he noticed Acnologia standing right next to him.

'That's impossible!' yelled out Reaper right after which he was hit by another kick, launching him straight into the air upwards. Reaper quickly recovered and fired a lightning bolt while being directly on top of Acnologia, who responded by firing a pulse of energy with one hand. The two attacks collided, the force, keeping Reaper airborne for a while.

Acnologia smiled and increased the power of his attack, overwhelming Reaper and knocking him away.

Reaper was recovering with his eyes closed, as his body was falling after Acnologia's attack

'Let's put an end to this shall we?' taunted Acnologia as he was about to launch another attack while Reaper was airborne. He sent out another wave of energy, while Reaper was airborne, landing a direct hit, sending Reaper's body smashing onto a boulder on the ground.

Reaper was hatched onto the boulder, with his eyes closed and his arms spread out. Acnologia approached him with his fist charged

'You tried your best but failed miserably in the end, Reaper as you call yourself, how pathetic!' taunted Acnologia, seconds after which, Reaper quickly opened his eyes and fired a skull bolt, aimed directly on Acnologia's face, stunning him and putting him on his knees as he screamed in pain, while Reaper stood up and panted, as lightning began to cover his entire body.

Acnologia stood up with anger as he looked at Reaper fully recovered from his attacks

Reaper quickly attacked with his scythe, increasing his strength after each blow, as a finisher, he gathered lightning around his scythe and swung it really hard, launching Acnologia airborne for a brief moment.

'Now!' yelled out Reaper, right after which he called an Ionic storm on Acnologia's position, illuminating the entire area, as the bright red lightning struck Acnologia's body

Cole, who was on the look out for Reaper, noticed the red lightning strike as he stood atop from a building, far away from the area.

'There you are!' Cole said to himself as he used his ice jump to launch himself away. He looked around while traversing across the buildings, as the other members were fending off the dragon invasion.

Cole then briefly stopped and turned around.

'Seven dragons.. Then.. Why is he over there?' thought Cole as he looked at the red lightning strikes around the far off area

'I don't have time to think' Cole shook his head and jumped away using his ice jump.

'It's really happening.. I.. I need to..' whispered a young girl as she hid herself in an alley. She then looked up to see Cole using his ice jump and lightning tether to move across the buildings

'C..Cole..' she whispered, right after which she had the strength to yell out his name

'Cole!' she yelled out, catching his attention, along with the dragon army she was hiding from.

Cole turned around and looked at Future Wendy calling out him, right after which he noticed the dragons coming towards her.

He immediately used his thunder drop, knocking off most of the hatchlings cornering her. He then fired a bolt stream, continuously knocking out the incoming dragonoids. As the swarm cleared Cole looked back to see a terrified Wendy, shivering in fear

'Wendy.. ' Cole noticed the scars on her arms

'Yeah.. She's the one from the future' Cole thought, right after which he noticed tears falling from her eyes

'Wendy.. Everything's going to be alright' Cole said, while kneeling down and wiping off her tears with his hand

'It's just as what happened.. Back..' she said, while crying

'No.. It won't happen again, not this time, don't you worry' replied, Cole, lighting up Wendy's eyes

'I have to go, I need to take care of something' said Cole as he stood up.

'Where are you going?' asked Wendy as Cole was about to leave.

'Don't have time to explain, find the others, or stay put Wendy' replied Cole, right after which she caught Cole's hand

'Please.. Be careful..' she whispered, while tears fell off her eyes

Cole stood motionless as he looked at her, then looked behind to see the dragons rampaging across the city.

'I will' replied Cole, right after which he started walking away

He then immediately turned around and hugged Wendy, while kneeling on the ground, after which he stood up and looked at her

'I'll be back..' he said, right after which he used his ice jump and moved swiftly across the buildings

Reaper looked up as he watched Acnologia's body fall after the ionic storm

'One more!' yelled out Reaper as he called another ionic storm onto Acnologia's position, this time slamming Acnologia onto the ground with brute force.

Reaper started grunting as he forced the ionic storm with every bit of energy he had. The lightning was so intense, it could be seen from miles away. The thunder after the lightning deafened anyone who was unlucky enough to be nearby.

As Reaper finished off his attack, he knelt on the ground, as his body began recovering. He looked up and watched as the dust began to settle around his attack. His eyes were lit up as he watched Acnologia come out of the attack.

'I must say that was really something' taunted Acnologia with a smile on his face

'Huh.. I'm just getting started' replied Reaper as he gathered lightning around his hands

'Hmph.. Well then, I guess it's time I really wrap this up' he added as he took out something from his pocket

Reaper's eyes were lit up as he was dumbstruck over what he saw.

'The Talisman... Of Equinox?' he thought as he looked at Acnologia holding it with his eyes wide open

'So you do know about it! Well then, I suppose you know how it works' he added

'It separates power from one user to another by harnessing the power of the zodiac Libra, yeah I know' replied Reaper while narrowing his eyelids

'I see the knowledge of the Talisman has been corrupted as well' he added, surprising Reaper

'What do you mean?' asked Reaper out of curiosity

'The talisman creates a double out of the individual it is used on, and by wielding the talisman, you can control the double!' he added, surprising Reaper, right after which Acnologia lifted the talisman, right after which red chains began covering Reaper's body.

'What the hell.. Is going on?' yelled out Reaper

'Ah, so you're a double made from the Talisman, who would have thought' said Acnologia with a smile on his face

As the chains covered Reaper's entire body, he desperately attempted to shoot out a lightning bolt, only to miss, right after which his eyes closed.

'Now then, arise Reaper!' yelled out Acnologia, after which the chains disappeared, and Reaper opened his eyes, with his entire eyeball being white, rather than the usual crimson red

Cole noticed Reaper standing still, facing Acnologia , as he arrived at the field.

'Reaper!' yelled out Cole, making Reaper turn around and look at him

'So you're battling this guy over here..' said Cole as he stood near Reaper

Acnologia grinned and held the talisman as he looked at Cole pose near Reaper.

'Reaper.. Take care of him for me will you?' asked Acnologia, surprising Cole, right after which he turned to his right to see Reaper charging his fist

'What the hell?!' yelled out Cole as he rolled to his right to dodge a hell fire rocket from Reaper.

Reaper quickly began firing alpha rockets at Cole, who quickly brought out his frost shield and blocked out the attacks.

'Reaper! What's gotten into you? Now's not the time!' yelled out Cole, to which Reaper barely responded and kept firing alpha rockets

Acnologia walked away and sat on a boulder as he watched the two fight

Cole grunted as he looked at Reaper

'Something's wrong here..' Cole thought, right after which he looked straight into Reaper's eyes. He noticed how his eyes were completely white, he then turned around to look at Acnologia holding on to the Talisman.

'Don't tell me.. He's controlling Reaper' Cole thought as he quickly rolled over and fired a magnum bolt onto Acnologia, who quickly deflected Cole's attack.

'I wouldn't want to fight 2 on 1 if I were you' taunted Acnologia, right after which Cole looked in front to see Reaper punch him straight in the abdomen, knocking him away, after which Reaper fired a couple of scythe bolts. Cole took the attacks head on and fell onto the ground. Reaper began walking towards Cole, seconds after which Cole fired an ice grenade, freezing Reaper's body

Cole walked towards Reaper with his amp wielded on his right hand.

'Come on Reaper! Snap out of it!' yelled out Cole, right after which the white eyes began to fade and Reaper began to cough

'The talisman.. Get the damn talisman.. Cole!' yelled out Reaper in anger, right after which red chains began covering his body

'Reaper!' yelled out Cole, right after which the chains disappeared, and Reaper's eyes started glowing white once again.

Reaper thawed out of the ice and charged his fist as he was about to attack

Cole looked around, then took a deep breath and posed in front of Reaper.

'Guess I'm out of options..' Cole thought as he looked at Reaper and was about to attack

Future Wendy was sitting at the same alley and noticed the sky beginning to flicker out blue and red lightning.

'Wendy? Is that you?!' yelled out Ursa as she came across her

'Ursa..' replied Wendy, right after which Ursa looked at the sky and noticed the same thing

'Blue.. And red.. Lighting..' whispered Ursa, soon after which a pulse of energy knocked her off her feet. She immediately got a flashback from the fight between Cole and Reaper in the grand magic games finals. Where a collision between their fists sent out a huge pulse of energy

'Why.. Are they fighting..' she thought to herself, right after which she began sprinting towards the direction of lightning

'Ursa!' yelled out future Wendy, who felt she had no choice but to follow her

'Cole.. Reaper.. Please..' thought Ursa as she kept sprinting towards the field


	33. Chapter 33 : Half as Long

Cole and Reaper began battling out, while Acnologia watched from afar, holding the Talisman with his hand, as Reaper was under his will. The two conduits fought endlessly, with their battle spanning for more than half an hour

'I'm running out of options.. I can't stall Reaper and take out the Talisman at the same time!' thought Cole as he kept dodging Reaper's attacks.

'This is getting quite boring!' yelled out Acnologia as he stood up and fired a beam of energy at Cole, who didn't expect it and took a hit

'Gahh!' yelled out Cole, being struck and knocked back by the attack, slammed onto a boulder.

'Finish him' ordered Acnologia, right after which Reaper gathered lightning around his right hand and aimed it at Cole

Cole looked up and grunted as he attempted to stand up.

Suddenly, a white chain made out of lightning wrapped around Reaper's legs, right after which Reaper got pulled, making him fall on the ground

'Ursa..?' whispered Cole as he looked at Ursa holding the lightning chain in her hands

'Cole.. What's going on..?' asked Ursa, right after which she sprinted towards Cole and helped him stand up

'Listen, you have to get out of here.. Right now..' said Cole, right after which she turned around to see Reaper stand up

'Reaper.. What are you doing?' she asked as she looked at him, seconds after which Reaper fired an alpha rocket, surprising her, forcing Cole to come in and block it with his frost shield

'It's no use, he's under that guy's control' said Cole, narrowing his eyelids

'Under.. Who's control?' asked Ursa

Cole pointed at Acnologia, who was standing with his arms folded and holding the Talisman

'The.. Talisman.. And.. Who's that?' asked Ursa with hesitation

'I'm sure you would have heard of me, the name is Acnologia' he said with a grin on his face, right after which Ursa's eyes dilated in fear

'Are you alright?' asked Cole, as Ursa felt uneasy

'He.. He attacked Tenrou Island.. That day..' replied Ursa, surprising Cole

'So.. He's that powerful..' thought Cole as he looked at Acnologia, right after which he looked at Reaper walking towards them. Cole clenched his fists and looked back at Ursa.

'Ursa, you're gonna have to hold off Reaper for me, I'm gonna go and take the talisman off his hands' said Cole, surprising Ursa, right after which she stared at the ground.

'Go...' she whispered, right after which she clenched her fist and looked at Reaper

Cole nodded his head and used his frost dash to close in towards Acnologia, Reaper turned his attention towards Cole, seconds after which a lightning chain wrapped his entire torso, forcing Reaper to turn around and face Ursa, right after which he immediately broke free of the chain and used his firebird strike.

Ursa being surprised, rolled over, but wasn't fast enough and got struck, knocking her away.

'Ursa!' yelled Cole as he immediately turned around and looked at her, only to see her standing and raising her hand

'I will handle this, focus.. On the talisman' she said in a bold tone, as she narrowed her eyelids and posed, with streaks of lightning erupting from her fists

Cole nodded and dashed towards Acnologia, who waited for him to close in. As he did, Cole immediately used his ice jump, seconds before Acnologia could land an attack.

'This trick, he did it too!' thought Acnologia, right after which he immediately fired a pulse wave above him without even looking.

Cole felt surprised and immediately used his frost shield to block out the attack mid air. Acnologia kept firing, increasing his power by the second, while Cole kept holding onto his frost shield

'Hahahah! You can't possibly keep this up forever!' yelled out Acnologia, right after which Cole fired an ice rocket with his other hand, forcing Acnologia to dodge. Cole landed on the ground and immediately closed in with his frost dash. He attempted to strike Acnologia with his amp. However, Acnologia caught it just before he could land a blow

Ursa fired a couple of lightning Bolts, which barely left a scratch on Reaper's body. She then charged her fists and dashed towards him, only to be knocked back by Reaper's punch blast. She landed on the ground and attempted to stand up, she looked at Reaper walking towards him and then turned to her right to see Cole engaged in a battle with Acnologia

'I can't give up, not just yet!' she thought, right after which she stood up and began charging her entire body. Reaper aimed his palm at her and fired a hell fire rocket, which Ursa dodged by rolling over and counter attacking by firing lightning bolts at Reaper's face.

Reaper got stunned for a moment by the attack, right after which Ursa created a blade out of lightning and dashed towards him, when all of the sudden, Reaper quickly recovered and fired another punch blast. This time however, Ursa jumped and threw her lightning sword onto Reaper, slicing through his body and shocking him, forcing him to fall on his knees.

Ursa panted as she watched Reaper's body getting covered with lightning, soon after which Reaper stood up and took out the sword, and drained the lightning from it.

She clenched her fist, then looked at Cole, who was still battling Acnologia

'I just need to get the artifact off him!' thought Cole as he kept firing multiple rockets in the air.

'What's this?' thought Acnologia as he looked into the air, short after which he noticed Cole crouching right next to him. He felt surprised, right after which Cole delivered a powerful uppercut, launching him into the air. Cole then used his ice jump to catch upto him and struck him with his amp, right after which he attempted to snatch the talisman off of his neck. Acnologia caught hold of his arm and then punched Cole in the chest, right after which he tossed Cole on the ground and fired another pulse of energy. Cole stood up and used his frost shield to counter the attack, right after which he fired an alpha bolt at Acnologia.

The rockets Cole fired earlier began to converge towards Acnologia, landing a direct hit as rocket after rocket fell onto him

Cole's eyes lit up at that moment, soon after which he called in an ionic storm onto Acnologia's position. The storm being fierce, illuminated the entire area and could be seen from far.

As the dust from Cole's attack settled, he noticed Acnologia standing still with minor scratches.

'Just what is this guy, it's as if my attacks have no effect, or he just recovers so quickly' Cole kept thinking as he was panting after the attack

Ursa got knocked away by Reaper's attacks as she was attempting to dodge them.

'Don't... Hold... Back...' said Reaper with interruptions in his voice, as his eyes were flickering from white to red

'Reaper.. I..' she whispered as she watched him aiming his palm at her.

'I won't..' she said while standing up. A bright red lightning struck her from the sky

'Well well' said Acnologia with a smile as he looked at Ursa.

'Ursa..' whispered Cole, as he looked at Ursa's body beginning to levitate from the ground

Ursa's body began transforming into the Reaper Mistress as her face got covered by a skull paint, with her body getting surrounded by an aura of red lightning

She drew out two swords of red lightning as she stared at Reaper, who was about to fire an alpha rocket. She immediately closed in and attacked with her swords, stunning Reaper with every slash, and followed her attack by wrapping Reaper in a lightning chain and tossing him away by slamming him onto the ground.

Reaper almost immediately recovered and caught hold of the chains, immediately pulling Ursa close towards him and then punching her away simultaneously

He then drew out his scythe and started walking towards her. Ursa recovered and watched from meters away. She then tightened her fists and made a scythe out of lightning.

Both Reaper and Ursa dashed towards each other, both of them striking their scythes together, releasing sparks of red lightning all around them, soon after which Reaper got the upper hand and knocked her away. He then immediately fired an alpha rocket at her. Ursa couldn't react fast enough and took a hit.

Reaper then kept firing alpha rockets at her, to which Ursa kept taking hits

Cole, who was busy dealing with Acnologia, noticed Ursa taking hits.

'No.. Ursa!' yelled out Cole, right after which a wave of energy struck him, sending him flying towards a boulder. Cole shook his head as he attempted to stand up.

'Next time, don't get distracted!' taunted Acnologia, right after which he fired another wave, landing a direct hit on Cole, knocking him out cold.

Ursa stood up after the attacks, and was on her knees, she kept panting as the attacks from Reaper took a heavy toll on her body.

'Cole..' she whispered as she looked at Cole's unconscious body, and then looked at Reaper and Acnologia.

She charged straight towards Reaper with all of her strength , drawing out a lightning sword, which Reaper easily deflecting her attacks with his scythe, right after which he attacked her hand, disarming her of her sword, soon after which he lifted her up by choking her

Reaper drained off her energy, the Reaper mode began to fade off her body, soon after which Reaper tossed her away. Ursa struggled to stand up, the Reaper Mistress mode faded off her body, she took deep breaths and watched as Reaper began approaching her.

She looked at Acnologia, and the Talisman hanging on his neck, right after which she turned her attention towards Reaper and attempted to attack. Reaper stood still and used his punch blast, knocking her away from him. Ursa, being completely drained, clenched her fist and attempted to stand.

'Reaper, kill her' ordered Acnologia, as Reaper watched Ursa stand up and aimed her hand.

'Half as long..' said Ursa as she looked at Reaper, while struggling to stand

'Twice.. As bright..' replied Reaper.. With his eyes fading from white to red in between

'I gotta try..' she said, while aiming her hand, and tears rolling down her cheeks

'I.. know..' replied Reaper, soon after which Ursa shot a lightning bolt at his face, to which Reaper responded by firing a scythe bolt, striking Ursa's body

Ursa took the hit, didn't falter in pain, moved a bit and kept aiming her hand

Reaper hesitated, then fired another scythe bolt, stunning Ursa completely as she fell onto the ground, she then got up with every last bit of strength she had and aimed her palm at him once again

Reaper then took a moment, and fired the last scythe bolt, hitting Ursa, right after which she fell on the ground and stared at the night sky, as her eyes began to close, with her life fading away.

'The rest.. Is upto you' she whispered, soon after which she closed her eyes, and passed away.

Reaper began walking towards her body, soon after which his white eyes completely faded away. He looked at her corpse and knelt near it in sorrow.

Acnologia felt confused and held the talisman, right after which he looked at Reaper, who stood up and turned around and stared at him

'The link is broken..' said Acnologia, as he looked at Reaper, walking towards him in anger


	34. Chapter 34 : Twice as Bright

Reaper stared at Acnologia, who was grinning while holding the Talisman of equinox. Acnologia then tossed it away as he rendered it useless. Reaper clenched his right fist in anger, as lightning began surrounding his body

Cole, after being knocked out cold for a while, opened his eyes, to see Reaper facing off Acnologia.

'Reaper..' whispered Cole, as he stood up

'Well well, are you done with your nap?' taunted Acnologia as Cole stood up and shook his head, followed by holding his head in pain

Cole then looked at Ursa lying on the ground, he felt surprised, right after which he turned and looked at Reaper, who was looking at Cole. Reaper just closed his eyes and nodded, hinting Cole over the fact that Ursa is no more

'Ursa...' whispered Cole, as he punched the ground in anger.

'Well then, since you two are standing, I might as well end it' taunted Acnologia, lightning up Cole and Reaper's eyes.

'Cole!' yelled out Reaper, catching his attention.

'I never thought I would resort to this, but I have no choice' said Reaper, while closing his eyes

'What do you mean?' asked Cole, soon after which Reaper turned towards him and extended his hand

'Reaper?' Cole thought for a moment, right after which he looked at Acnologia charging an attack

'That's right! Give in! You have no chance!' yelled out Acnologia, as he built up a powerful attack

Cole extended his hand, and caught hold of Reaper's hand, soon after which a surge of lightning bursted around Cole. His entire body getting covered with blue and red lightning.

Reaper gave a smile, while his body began to fade away, as the two began merging into one. The blue and red lightning aura surrounding Cole began to converge and turn purple.

'Die!' yelled out Acnologia, sending a huge wave of energy at Cole, who stood still and raised his arm, bringing a frost shield covered with flames, completely blocking out Acnologia's attack

'Wh.. What the?' said Acnologia with slight hesitation, soon after which he was shocked to see Cole standing with his shield, with little to scratches on him. The left side of Cole's face had Reaper's skull facepaint, while the other half was himself. Cole now had an aura of purple lightning surrounding his body as he held the shield in his right hand.

'What's the matter, you sound like you're afraid' said Cole, as he took out his amp on his right hand, and Reaper's scythe on his left hand.

'You won't be able to do anything!' yelled out Acnologia as he repeatedly fired a couple of energy blasts, which Cole replied by dodging with his ice jump and using the firebird strike to close in, followed by slashing his scythe and amp altogether, delivering a brutal blow.

Acnologia held his chest as he took the attack, soon after which he noticed Cole attempting to slash his amp. He immediately caught the amp, but was surprised to see Cole smile, as Cole slashed the scythe on his other hand. Acnologia hesitated and immediately caught the scythe with his other hand. Cole then zapped both of his weapons simultaneously, delivering a powerful shock, stunning Acnologia, soon after which he gave a headbutt and followed by slashing his amp straight up, launching Acnologia into the air.

Cole narrrowed his eyes and used his lightning hook and slammed Acnologia onto the ground and used a punch blast, further knocking him away.

Seconds after Cole's assault, Acnologia stood up, fuming with anger, while Cole stood still and gathered lightning around his hands

'You.. You will pay for that!' yelled out Acnologia in anger, as scales began covering his body

'What's he doing?' thought Cole, soon after which Acnologia took a deep breath and fired his dragon's roar, channeling an immense wave of energy, which Cole stood still and blocked using his frost fire shield. As Cole stood still and blocked, Acnologia dashed towards him, soon as the attack was done, Cole's eyes were lit up as he saw Acnologia standing right underneath him. He punched Cole straight in the abdomen, stunning Cole for a few seconds, right after which he attempted to attack once again, this time, Cole managing to grab hold of his arm before he could. Cole then sent a jolt of electricity through his arm, making Acnologia scream in pain, right after which he kicked Cole, knocking Cole away from himself.

Cole quickly recovered and fired a couple of hell-fire rockets, followed by firing a couple of ice rockets. Acnologia stood still and punched the rockets fired by Cole. One by one he broke through the rockets. Cole however, grinned, making Acnologia furious, soon after which he looked at his hands being frozen by the ice rockets fired by Cole. Cole then used his frost dash and closed in. He immediately attempted to whack Acnologia with his amp. Acnologia tried to stop the amp, but his hands being frozen were too slow, couldn't match Cole's speed and took a direct hit.

Cole kept slashing his amp with brute force, ending his Combo by catching hold of Acnologia and slamming him onto the ground

Acnologia grunted and looked up to see Cole aiming his hand at him

'Say goodnight!' said Cole as he fired an alpha rocket at point blank range, causing an explosion, knocking Acnologia out cold.

As the dust settled, Cole looked at Acnologia knocked out unconscious, then looked at Ursa's lifeless body. He raised Acnologia's body and raised his palm as the thought of bio-leeching him came through his head

'Don't do it' a voice echoed through his mind

'R..Reaper?' Cole said, while letting go of Acnologia

Soon, Acnologia woke up and immediately punched Cole, knocking him a couple of meters away.

Cole got knocked straight into a boulder, soon after which a wave of energy came crashing straight towards him, completely blinding him as it hit him head on

'Get up!' yelled out Reaper, as Cole and Reaper were standing together in a huge room

'Reaper.. Wait.. What is this?' said Cole as he looked around

Cole was seeing Reaper in his sub consciousness, as he was getting attacked by Acnologia

'Cole.. The fight's just begun' said Reaper

Cole then figured the seriousness of Reaper's tone and calmed down

'Get up, take that bastard down' said Reaper, when suddenly he got interrupted by Cole

'Wait.. Why would you.. Do this?' asked Cole, making Reaper grin

Reaper closed his eyes and grinned, right after which he kept his palm on Cole's shoulder

'Half as long..' he said, lighting up Cole's eyes

'Twice as bright..' replied Cole.. Soon after which he opened his eyes and started running towards Acnologia's energy attacks with his fist in the front

'Take this!' yelled Cole, punching him straight in the face, right after which he caught hold of Acnologia's leg and spun him, sending him flying away from Cole, right after which Cole fired a couple of Alpha rockets, further pushing Acnologia's body straight into the air.

'Now!' Reaper's voice echoed in Cole's head, soon after which Cole called an ionic storm, striking Acnologia's body with intense purple lightning, more powerful than anything Cole had summoned before, Powerful enough to be noticed by every wizard battling in the city.

Cole stood still as he watched Acnologia's body fall onto the ground, when suddenly, he noticed wings sprout out of Acnologia's body

Cole narrowed his eyelids and fired a magnum bolt, but Acnologia managed to evade it by flying away.

'What the hell is with this guy?' thought Cole as he watched Acnologia fly around, as his scales began to intensify

'I have to say, you're strong, but this is as far as you'll go, Cole' said Acnologia, as he began transforming into a dragon

'He's a freaking dragon?!' exclaimed Cole in surprise as Acnologia flew up and completed his transformation into a black dragon and roared. The roar, loud enough to be heard by everyone in Crocus

'Wait.. What is that?' thought Erza as she looked straight into the horizon and saw a a giant figure, lighting up her eyes

'No, it can't be, not this soon!' exclaimed Future Rogue atop of the dragon he rode, in the midst of his battle with Natsu

Natsu immediately punched him, knocking him away, right after which he looked and grunted

'It's that dragon alright' said Natsu, right after which he dodged an attack from Future Rogue

Cole braced himself as Acnologia roared. He then looked straight at the Dragon and fired a couple of alpha rockets, however, the rockets barely dealt damage

'What's the matter, don't tell me that's the best you've got!' yelled out Acnologia as he dived straight towards Cole.

Cole stood still and waited for Acnologia to close in, soon after which he used his ice jump and got on top of Acnologia.

'Get off!' yelled Acnologia spun in an attempt to shake Cole off. Cole held on to the skin, right after which he kept slamming his fist into Acnologia's face, dealing quite a bit of damage, right after which Acnologia managed to shake Cole off. As Cole was mid air, Acnologia slashed his claw. Cole however used his fire-bird strike and struck Acnologia's face, while dodging his attack

Acnologia, getting knocked back, flung his tail, slamming Cole onto the ground.

'You're pathetic, you will never beat me!' yelled out Acnologia, soon after which Cole stood up and tightened his fist in anger

Cole held his hands tightly as he posed for an ionic vortex. He held his pose for about 5 seconds, soon after which he summoned an ionic vortex. The ionic vortex was enormous, with storms of purple lightning swirling along with it, as it traveled straight to Acnologia, who attempted to fly away, but got sucked in it

Cole saw this as his opportunity and attempted to call an ionic storm, but paused as he saw Acnologia fly out from the storm

'That was a futile attempt, now you will die!' yelled out Acnologia, charging an attack, as he was about to unleash his true dragon's roar

'That attack nearly wiped off Tenrou island!' Cole thought, soon after which he immediately made a frost flame shield

Acnologia fired his dragon's roar, sending a huge blast of energy, Cole's eyes were lit up as he noticed the sheer intensity of the attack. He then held onto the shield with both of his arms, as he took on the attack

As the attack cleared out. Cole stood still, panting, with his shield cracked, and chunks of ice falling off his body

'You're a persistent little fool!' exclaimed Acnologia, as Cole began panting and tightened his fist in anger

Acnologia began charging up another attack. Cole grunted and attempted to block out another attack, but couldn't make another shield as his body was recovering from the previous attack

'Reaper, get out of my body now!' yelled out Cole in desperation

'One of us has to be there to take this guy down, promise me you will!' Cole yelled with all his voice as he closed his eyes and tightened his fists

Cole suddenly looked at Reaper in his subconscious mind, where Reaper was looking at him

'I will' said Reaper, after which Cole gave a smile

Just as red lightning began surrounding Cole's body, Acnologia fired another true dragon's roar

Cole closed his eyes and gave a smile, as he felt it was his inevitable end, when suddenly, he noticed a sound of footsteps.

'What's that?' Reaper said, while still being in Cole's subconscious.

Cole felt surprised, right after which he opened his eyes to see Future Wendy standing in front of him.

'Sky Barrier!' yelled out Future Wendy, as she blocked Acnologia's attack with all her might

'Wendy.. Wendy!' yelled out Cole as he stood up, Wendy turned around and gave a smile, as a teardrop flew from her cheeks, soon after which her barrier cracked, forcing Cole to evade.

'No... Wendy..' whispered Cole, as the dust settled, and Wendy lied on the ground

'Wendy, stay with me.., Come on kid..' Cole said, feeling uneasy as he repeatedly used his pulse heal

'Cole...' she whispered, as blood traveled down from her mouth to the ground.

'Why...' Cole said in a low tone, as tears rolled down Cole's cheeks, while he held onto Future Wendy's body, being on his knees

'Because.. I couldn't watch you die.. Again..' she replied, while giving a smile, and passing away.

Cole kept her on the ground, while clenching his fists, his teardrops falling onto the ground as an aura of lightning began surrounding Cole's body

'Ruuaaaaaaaaaggghhhhh!' yelled Cole in anger, soon after which a giant lightning bolt struck his body. Cole's body began levitating as he spread his arms and legs, fire began surrounding him as he kept levitating, soon after which another lightning bolt struck his body, this time the fire began taking shape, as he began to completely transform into THE BEAST

'THIS ENDS NOW!' Cole yelled in a fit of rage, as he completely transformed into the beast

* * *

 _'I'm sorry Wendy~'_


	35. Chapter 35 : The Final Battle

Lightning strikes illuminated the entire night sky. Strong flashes of lightning erupted from the area where Cole was battling Acnologia, bright enough to be seen miles away. Cole's body transforming into the beast, this time undergoing a complete transformation.

'What on Earth is this!' yelled out Acnologia in shock as he watched Cole transform into he beast

After completing his transformation, Cole clenched his fists and roared, with his voice being heard by everyone in the city

'What.. the hell is that?' thought Natsu as he and Future Rogue paused and looked at the Beast alongside Acnologia

'That.. no way.. Cole?' said Erza, while fighting alongside Kagura and other members

Cole charged his fist and attempted to punch Acnologia, who responded by dodging it and flying away, after which he attacked by slashing his claw onto Cole

'Even with that, you're too slow!' yelled out Acnologia in confidence

Cole grunted and brought his hand forward, soon after which Acnologia started getting sucked in while being airborne.

'Gravity Magic? I.. I can't move!' yelled out Acnologia as he got closer and closer to Cole. Cole then delivered a powerful punch, knocking Acnologia onto the ground. He then started walking towards Acnologia, while gathering fire and lightning in his right hand

Acnologia recovered, to see Cole approaching him. He immediately got up and attempted to fly. Seeing his attempt, Cole immediately began sprinting, with his footsteps shaking the ground vigorously. Cole immediately caught hold of Acnologia's tail before he could fly off and pulled him towards the ground, right after which he delivered a powerful uppercut, followed by placing his palm on the dragon's chest and blasting him with a fireball, knocking Acnologia away, slamming him onto the ground.

'This monstrosity!' yelled out Acnologia as he opened his eyes to see Cole aiming his palm at him

'You will pay for what you've done!' yelled out Cole, as he was about to blast Acnologia with another fireball, when suddenly, Acnologia fired his dragon's roar, canceling out Cole's attack. Cole crossed his arms and tanked the attack, after which he looked up to see Acnologia approaching him .

Cole brought out his fist in Acnologia's way, in response to which Acnologia punched back, sending out a massive shock wave around the two

* * *

'Their battle, it'll tear everything apart' thought Future Rogue, as he paused and felt the shock

'Cole's out there, fighting that same dragon..' Natsu thought, soon after which he looked at Rogue in anger

'Hey! Didn't you want to make a dragon army to stop that Acnologia guy?' he asked in a loud tone

'Well that was my plan after all.. I mean..' replied Rogue, only to be interrupted by Natsu grabbing hold of him by his collar

'Now's your chance, take your buddies all around the city and fight that dragon!' yelled out Natsu in anger

'It's not that simple!' yelled out Future Rogue

'What do you mean?' asked an unconvinced Natsu

'These many dragons still won't be enough, Acnologia's power is a lot more than you think!' he said, soon after which Natsu punched him into the belly

'You're telling me you can't fight him?' asked Natsu

'I'm.. not ready yet' replied Future Rogue, right after which Natsu tossed him towards the tail of the dragon they rode

'You're nothing but a coward' said Natsu, soon after which he gathered flames around his fist

Future Rogue held his head, then looked at Acnologia battling out the Beast

'Who is he?' asked Future Rogue

'That's my buddy Cole out there, not a single doubt in my mind, I'd recognize that lightning any time' said Natsu

'Cole.. McGrath..' he whispered, soon after which he got a flash back of him killing Cole in his timeline, while Cole was protecting Wendy.

'He was.. so weak.. I killed him' said Future Rogue, soon after which Natsu turned his attention towards him

'You killed him?' asked Natsu, with his tone being slightly louder than usual

'I did, in my timeline, but if that's really Cole McGrath out there, the one I faced, held back' replied Future Rogue

'He had to hold back' said Natsu, lighting up Future Rogue's eyes

'He used all of his energy to send Wendy back in time, he put his life ahead of hers, something which you wouldn't understand' answered Natsu, leaving Future Rogue speechless.

Future Rogue looked at both of his hands, right after which he closed his eyes and stood up.

'I.. Will fight' he said, soon after which the dragon which the two rode on landed on the ground, soon after which the other dragons halted. Everyone was surprised as the assault by the dragons stopped all of the sudden

The Dragons began walking towards Future Rogue,as he ordered each one to group up.

'Alright, let's head out over there as fast as we can!' exclaimed Natsu

'Yes, but first I…' replied Future Rogue, when suddenly, a blade of ice pierced through his torso

'Ghh.. Aaaghh!' Future Rogue screamed in pain, as he coughed blood and fell onto the ground, surprising Natsu.

'You!' yelled out Natsu, as he looked at a woman with dark hair and a mask take the blade

'Natsu Dragneel, it's been a while' said the woman, soon after which she fired an ice blast, immediately freezing Natsu

'Don't bother coming out, I know your fire's gone for now' she said, soon after which the dragons began going berserk, without Rogue controlling them

'Why are you doing this?' asked Natsu as he desperately tried to free himself, only to get knocked out by a punch on his face

The woman then watched as the Dragons continued with their rampage, soon after which she noticed someone approaching her

'Reveal yourself, there's no point in hiding' she said, soon after which she turned around and threw an ice shard immediately.

The ice shard got sliced in half soon after

'Titania' she said, with a smile on her face, hidden behind her mask

'I'm surprised you're still alive' said Erza, soon after which she noticed Natsu lying on the ground, unconscious

'I should be the one asking you that' replied the woman

'It's been a while, Frost, or should I say.. Kuo' said Erza, soon after which Kuo took off her mask

'So you remember' replied Kuo, with one of her eyes having a scar

'Care to explain why you're doing this?' asked Erza, while holding her sword

Kuo then smiled and began laughing. She kept laughing for a quarter of a minute, till she finally stopped

'Cole, and that damn Reaper' she said, catching Erza's attention

'I'm not from your timeline, I was brought from the past, by him' she added, as she pointed at Future Rogue

'By him? For what?' asked Erza

'He wanted someone who knew how to stop Cole and Reaper' replied Kuo

'But that doesn't explain a thing! How did he know about what happened 7 years ago?' asked Erza in desperation

'He travelled back to the day Cole first arrived in Fiore, and kept an eye on who came along with him' replied Kuo

'Why does he want to stop Cole and Reaper?' asked Erza

'Isn't it obvious?' replied Kuo, lighting up Erza's eyes

'Both of them can come in the way of his plans, that's why!' she replied.

'I tricked the Princess into activating the RFI, with Cole and Reaper fighting in the games, it was the best moment to fire it up, since it requires their lightning to get charged. Soon as it fired up, it was taking away all the powers Cole and Reaper had, that's why Rogue managed to kill him. My plan was successful, but Cole managed to send that little girl back in time, making us do it all over again!' added Kuo

Erza grunted, soon after which Kuo's clone disappeared and she fired another ice shard, which she slashed away

'I won't let you get away with this!' yelled out Erza as she re-quipped into her heaven's wheel armor. She charged at Kuo while wielding both swords in her hands and slashed, Kuo immediately blocked her attack with her frost blade and attempted to slash back, which Erza parried and attacked back, knocking Kuo away

'You're strong' taunted Kuo, soon after which a clone of her caught Erza from behind and pinned her to the ground

'Why are you doing this?' yelled out Erza in desperation

'That's enough!' exclaimed Kuo in anger, after which she fired a sharp ice shard aimed at Erza's face

Erza closed her eyes and braced herself for the inevitable, when suddenly, a sound of the ice shard breaking echoed around her. She opened her eyes to see a man with blue hair, wearing a cape standing in front of her

'Frost' said the man, as he posed for an imminent fight

'Jellal Fernandes, I heard a bit about you before' replied Kuo

'Jellal..' whispered Erza, soon after which Jellal turned around and looked at her

'Erza, are you alright?' asked Jellal while helping her stand up

'Jellal, how did you know..' asked Erza

'Well you can thank Reaper for that' replied Jellal, lighting up Kuo's and Erza's eyes

'Reaper? He.. he told you?' asked Kuo

'As a matter of fact he did, he was one step ahead of you this whole time!' added Jellal

Jellal closes his eyes and flashes back to a conversation between him and Reaper

* * *

'Listen, this might surprise you a bit' said Reaper, startling Jellal

'I think I know who'll flip the switch on the RFI, the second time' he added

Jellal gave all of his attention to Reaper, while Reaper explained

'Lucy Kuo, she's the only one who knows about the RFI, other than Cole and me' Reaper added

'Kuo? I haven't heard of her before' replied Jellal

'She called herself Frost when she first landed here' Reaper added

'So she's from your dimension' said Jellal

'She was supposed to be dead, other than her no one else knows about the RFI' Reaper added

* * *

Jellal grinned and looked at Kuo, startling her as she got confused

'You planned on using the RFI against Cole and Reaper, making them weak, while not killing you in the process, so you placed a timer on it, long enough for you to escape before it goes off, of course it was all as planned, but it didn't go off, owing to Reaper shutting it down before it could' added Jellal, lighting up Kuo's eyes

'When Future Rogue agreed to fight Acnologia, you stabbed him in the back, because that would mean him changing his plan, and ultimately you not being able to go back' added Jellal

Kuo stared at the ground, right after which she looked up and fired an ice grenade in anger, to which Jellal tossed away Erza and rolled over.

Jellal used his meteor and dashed straight towards Kuo, attempting to punch her, Kuo jumped to dodge his attack and attempted to blast Jellal with an ice rocket, only to see Jellal being right behind her

'So fast!' exclaimed Kuo as she summoned her frost blade in quick succession and slashed it mid air. Jellal however, evaded her attack and knocked her back with a kick, slamming her onto the ground

Kuo got up to see Jellal coming towards her at tremendous speed

'Meteor!' yelled out Jellal as his body got covered with a yellow aura, he dashed straight towards Kuo, encircling her. Kuo fired ice shards everywhere out of desperation, but couldn't land a single attack, soon after which Jellal approached her and gave a swift upper cut, right after which he encircled her while she was airborne

Kuo recovered mid air and attempted to attack Jellal, only to get slammed into the ground once again, by a kick, right after which Jellal landed on the ground

Kuo stood up, with anger as she clenched her fist and was about to fire an ice rocket

'Grand Chariot!' yelled out Jellal, as 7 magic circles above Kuo fired waves of energy at her, into a powerful blast

Kuo, attempted to create an ice shield to protect herself, but wasn't fast enough and took the hit head on

* * *

Cole tightened his fist and fired a giant fireball at Acnologia

'Not this time!' yelled out Acnologia, soon after which he used his dragon's roar at Cole, passing through Cole's fireball. Cole immediately roared and punched through Acnologia's attack.

'I..impossible!' yelled out Acnologia, as he attempted to fly and attack. Cole however, raised his arm and began pulling Acnologia once again.

'He's using the same magic!' yelled out Acnologia

Cole caught Acnologia by the neck and began choking him.

'Die!' yelled out Cole in anger, soon after which Acnologia fired a dragon's roar straight at Cole's face. The attack was powerful, forcing Cole to let go of Acnologia.

'Hahah! Now then, let's wrap this up!' yelled out Acnologia as he was about to fire another roar at Cole.

The dust from the previous attack settled, and Cole was standing still with half of his face cracked up. Cole stood still and raised his hand, right after which Acnologia fired a fully charged Dragon's roar.

Cole's eyes were lit up and he suddenly used both of his hands to tank the attack. The attack, being powerful enough, pushed him to the ground. A bright flash of light, followed by a huge explosion rocked the area.

'Cole..' whispered Erza as she immediately turned and looked at the flash of light

Acnologia looked down on Cole, as his body was fully cracked from the attack

'Not so tough now huh!' yelled out Acnologia, right after which he turned around and began flying straight into the air

'Gotta say, you gave me a good fight, but this is the end!' yelled out Acnologia as he soared in the sky, and was about to fire another Dragon's roar

Cole lied on the ground, with dust beginning to cover his body, his transformation beginning to wear out as his body began to expose itself

'Cole..' whispered the voice of a young girl

'You can do it!' the voice got louder all of the sudden

'W..Wendy?' Cole whispered, right after which he opened his eyes to see the beast transformation off of his body.

He immediately stood up and looked at Acnologia charging his roar.

'No.. no..' whispered Cole

'I won't let it end this way!' exclaimed Cole, soon after which red lightning began emitting out of his body, the lightning began taking shape

'Reaper' Cole said, as the lightning took form

'McGrath' replied Reaper, soon after which the two nodded and looked at Acnologia

The two clenched their fists and called out an ionic storm, simultaneously, both of their storms striking Acnologia

'What.. this.. shouldn't hurt… aaaaaaaggghhh!' yelled out Acnologia as the two ionic storms struck him. The storms being blue and red, illuminated the sky with bright flashes of light. Acnologia couldn't fire a roar, as a result of the attack, the dragon form began falling to the ground.

'McGrath! Now!' yelled out Reaper, right after which Cole slammed his fists onto the ground, creating sharp spikes of ice

Reaper clenched his fist, as lightning began emitting out from his body. A bright red object began appearing in the sky

Acnologia quickly recovered and flew upwards, saving himself from the ice spikes.

'Damn it!' yelled out Cole

Reaper grinned, as Acnologia laughed and dodged the spikes, when suddenly, he turned around to see a giant electric fireball strike him, sending him flying away from the two

Cole whistled as the fireball struck Acnologia's body, the two watched as his body flew all the way to the Castle, where it crashed into the Eclipse gate.

Acnologia's fall had completely destroyed the eclipse gate, soon after which all the dragon's bodies began getting covered with a yellow aura

Jellal watched as Kuo's and Future Rogue's body got covered with a yellow aura

'The effect of the Eclipse gate is gone, the gate must have been destroyed' he said, as he watched their bodies fade away

The dragons rampaging through the city had their bodies fade away, and so did Acnologia's body

Cole walked towards Future Wendy's body, he knelt and held her as the yellow aura surrounded her.

'Rest in peace, kid' whispered Cole, right after which her body faded away. The clouds began to disappear, and the light of the moon shun around Cole and Reaper

'They did it!' exclaimed Gray and the other members as the raised their arms in celebration

Wendy felt enthusiastic and looked at the night sky.

'Yeah!' she added with a smile

* * *

Future Wendy wakes up in lying in an open field, where she looks around in surprise

'Hey Wendy!' a sound familiar to her catches her attention

'Cole?' she whispered, soon after which she looks at Cole standing right behind her

'Come on, everyone else is waiting for you!' Cole added with a smile, right after which Wendy got up, and the two walked together

* * *

Cole took a deep breath, then turned to see Reaper staring at Ursa's body

'Reaper, just wanted to say, I couldn't have done it without you' said Cole as he stood beside him, both standing in front of Ursa

'Kid didn't deserve to die' replied Reaper, right after which Cole kept his hand on Reaper's shoulder

'It's alright' said Cole, soon after which Reaper grinned

Reaper knelt and kept his palm on Ursa's body, soon after which red lightning began surrounding her completely

'Reaper, what are you doing?' asked Cole

'Doing what's right' replied Reaper, right after which he stood up and turned around. He then immediately fell on the ground, Cole rushed towards him, only to be halted by Reaper raising his arm

'Half as long' said Reaper, as he gave a smile, with his body flickering

Cole paused, as the flashes of his fights with Reaper went through his mind. He felt like he knew what was about to come

'Twice as bright..' replied Cole, soon after which Reaper closed his eyes and his body disintegrated completely

'Goodbye, Reaper' whispered Cole, soon after which he walked towards the scythe left by him. Cole held onto the scythe and then kept it along with his amp


	36. Chapter 36 : Epilogue

The clouds began to dissipate, the sky began clearing up, with the stars lighting up the night sky. Cole gazed at the sky and closed his eyes, remembering everything Reaper had done before, till the end, where he just faded away. Suddenly, sounds of coughing catch his attention, right after which he turns to see Ursa coughing and opening her eyes

'Ursa!' yelled out Cole as he sprinted towards her

'Cole.. what.. what happened?' she asked, as she tried to gather her strength

'Rest easy, it's all over' replied Cole

Ursa attempted to stand up, but couldn't.

'Where's Reaper?' she asked as she looked around

'He… he didn't make it' replied Cole, lighting up Ursa's eyes. Ursa felt uneasy, a teardrop rolled down her cheeks as she lied on the ground. She immediately wiped it off.

'What's this?' she thought, as she felt something in her closed fist

She opened to see the a key with a skull face inscribed on it, in her hand

'A key?' she thought, soon after which she kept it in her pocket.

'Let's go, our guild members must be waiting for us' said Cole, as he stood up. Ursa nodded and attempted to stand up, but couldn't. Cole gave a smile and lifted her on his back

The two walked out of the forest, noticed the castle all lit up, celebrating the victory over the dragon invasion

'They must be in there' said Cole, after which the two entered through the castle gates

Cole opened the door with Ursa on his back, soon after which everyone inside turned their attention towards him

'Cole!' yelled out Natsu as he, along with other guild members sprinted towards him in joy

'You did it man!' exclaimed Gray

'That was commendable Cole, now let's all celebrate!' said Master Makarov in joy

Cole scratched his head and smiled, soon after which he noticed Wendy standing afar and cheering

Cole's emotion immediately changed, he remembered Future Wendy sacrificing her life to save him. He walked towards Wendy, keeping his head down

'Cole? Are you alright?' she asked out of curiosity

Cole just kept looking at her, soon after which he knelt and hugged her

Wendy felt surprised, right after which she noticed Cole sobbing

'I'm glad you're alright Wendy' he said, while a few tears rolled down his cheek

Wendy nodded and hugged him back, closing her eyes, as a few teardrops fell off her eyelids

Everyone looked at the two with smiles on their faces. The emotional bond of Cole with Wendy and the rest of the guild could be felt in that moment

Cole was then interrupted by members of Sabertooth, Sting, Rogue, Yukino and Frosh

'Cole, this might be out of the blue, but have you seen Reaper?' asked Sting

'I haven't seen him since he was fighting that rock dragon, where could he be?' added Rogue

'Guys.. I..' replied Cole, soon after which he looked at Frosh, who's eyes were wide open, waiting for a positive answer

'Reaper.. he.. he didn't make it..' Cole added, surprising everyone

'Reaper.. why..' whispered Frosh, as he was about to cry, right after which Rogue held him

Ursa, who was watching from a distance, held the key in her hand and looked at the skull mark at it

'He gave everything he had, so that we have a brighter future, he didn't want us to sit and cry about it, so let's all give a toast to him, to Reaper!' exclaimed Cole, right after which everyone else in the hall joined in

The celebrations ran all night long,with lots of food and drinks being served.

* * *

The next day, Cole and the other guild members were all set to leave for Magnolia. They all rode in a carriage and were all set to leave.

'Just a sec, I'll be there!' yelled out Cole, standing on an open grass field and staring at the sky

'I'm gonna miss this place' thought Cole, right after which he turned around

'Come on Cole, it's a long journey' said Wendy, soon after which Cole sat in the carriage with her and Erza

Upon reaching Magnolia, Cole and the other members were greeted with a heroes welcome, as their guild was branded as the no. 1 guild of Fiore, owing to Cole's heroics. As a gesture of appreciation, the mayor of Magnolia gifted a new guild hall to Fairy Tail

'Sweet!' exclaimed Natsu, as him and the others rushed into the guild hall. Everyone accommodated to the guild hall as quick as they could. Job requests started pouring in. A few hours passed, Cole was sitting at the bench, having lunch with Wendy

'So, you're leaving tomorrow?' asked Wendy

'Yeah, it's gonna be tough re adjusting myself back there' replied Cole

'We're all going to miss you' said Wendy, as she stared at the table

'I'll miss you too' replied Cole, right after which he drank a glass of water.

'Say, Natsu, how about a sparring match?' asked Cole with a smirk on his face

'You're on!' replied Natsu, gathering a flame on his fist

'See you at the park in half an hour' added Cole

'Alright!' yelled out Natsu with enthusiasm

Cole and Natsu stood near the park, much to their surprise, a large crowd had gathered around them as they were about to fight

'So we're a hell lot popular now huh' said Cole

'It's getting me pumped up!' replied Natsu, right after which the two engaged in a battle

* * *

As Cole and Natsu fought, Ursa, was on the opposite side, within a forest all by herself

'Lightning bolt!' she yelled out as she fired a bolt and it tore through a wooden board. She then closed her eyes, making red lightning gather around her body, as she attempted to transform into her Reaper mode. She successfully managed to do it, right after which she turned back to normal

'I have to get stronger..' she thought to herself, right after which she gathered lightning and fired at another plank. While doing this, she dropped the key she helf previously. She noticed and held onto the key and carefully looked at it.

She immediately remembered Lucy's celestial magic, right after which an idea sprung into her mind

She held onto the key and raised it while holding it

'Open, gate of the conduit, Reaper!' she yelled out, soon after which sparks of lightning began emitting out of the key, the lightning began taking shape and it turned into Reaper

Ursa's eyes lit up as she stared at Reaper, standing, with an aura of red lightning surrounding his body

'Reaper.. is it really you?' she asked as she walked towards him

'Kid..' whispered Reaper, soon after which she hugged him. Reaper paused for a moment, then looked at her

'Everything alright?' asked Reaper

'Everything's fine..' replied Ursa, soon after which Reaper waved his hand and turned around

'Wh… where are you going?' asked Ursa

'I'm a celestial spirit now..' replied Reaper

'A celestial spirit?' asked Ursa in confusion

'I'm bound with you by that key..' added Reaper

Ursa then looked at the key, she kept looking at it, then snapped it in half.

'W.. what did you do?' asked Reaper in confusion

'I can't keep you bound, you don't deserve that' replied Ursa, soon after which a lightning bolt struck Reaper

Reaper then raised his arms and looked around.

'I'm.. ' he whispered

Ursa smiled, right after which she posed

'Kid..' whispered Reaper

'Don't just stand there, fight me!' she yelled out

Reaper grinned and gathered lightning around his hands

* * *

It was night, Cole and Natsu's fight ended in a draw. Cole was in his bedroom, as he stared at the night sky out of a window.

'New Marais..' Cole thought right after which he got up and went to get a glass of water. He took a glass full and walked towards the balcony, drinking it. He leaned towards the ledge and took a deep breath

'Should have thought you'd be here' said a voice familiar to him

Cole just closed his eyes and smiled

'Well, I'll be leaving tomorrow, so I thought I'd have a good look once again, Erza' replied Cole

'I won't spoil your moment Cole' added Erza as she looked at him

'Actually, it's good that you're here, we didn't get to talk much since the end on the games' replied Cole

'So what do you wanna talk about?' asked Erza, while staring at the sky with Cole

'It's about you guys, I mean you've shown me a lot, taught me so much, I wouldn't be the same person I am, if it weren't for you guys' said Cole

'Well, that makes the two of us Cole' replied Erza

Cole looked at her and felt surprised

'Yeah, you taught me to never judge a book by it's cover, to give second chances, I only wish you were a member forever Cole' she said, while staring at the ground during her last sentence

'Well, you know, I'll always be a member of the guild' said Cole, while showing the emblem on his shoulder

Erza turned around and looked Cole straight in the eye, she kept staring into his eyes, soon after which she leaned in and gave a kiss

Cole felt surprised at first, then kissed back, while holding her. After the two exchanged a kiss, the two looked at each other and then just smiled

'Don't be a stranger.. Demon of Empire City' said Erza, while a teardrop rolled down her cheek.

'I won't.. Titania' replied Cole

'It's getting late, you should rest' said Erza, as she started walking away. Cole kept looking at her as she walked away, right after which he smiled and stared at the sky once again

* * *

Reaper strolled along the buildings, wearing his black robe, soon after which he paused.

'Jellal' said Reaper, soon after which Jellal and Meredy appeared behind him

'Reaper..' replied Jellal

'Just wanted to say thanks' said Reaper, while turning around and extending his hand

'Wow that's completely out of character' taunted Meredy

'Reaper, we won the battle, but the war's not over. Your prediction about frost did come true' said Jellal

'So Kuo did show up' said Reaper

'Thanks to you, we were able to stop a big calamity' said Jellal

'It's not just me Jellal, I couldn't have done it without you, or Meredy' replied Reaper

'Did he hit his head or something, he's actually being nice!' Meredy added

Reaper grinned and poked Meredy's head

'So, what do you plan ahead?' asked Jellal

Reaper stared at the ground, then turned around. 'I'll meet up with you tomorrow, there's something I gotta take care of first' said Reaper, right after which he used his fire bird strike and moved away

'Show off!' exclaimed Meredy, Jellal just looked and smile as he watched Reaper move away

At Sabertooth's guild hall, everyone was standing together, with their hands in a prayer, as everyone shared a moment of silence for Reaper. Suddenly, knocks on the guild door interrupted the sermon

Reaper then entered, surprising everyone, making them stare at him as he walked it

'Uhh, what's up with everyone?' he thought, soon after which he looked at Rogue

'Listen, Rogue.. I'm sorry about Frosh' said Reaper

'Reaper.. you're alive..' replied Rogue.. surprising him

'I am.. I know..' he replied with a tone of confusion, soon after which he turned to his right to see Frosh standing, with tears rolling down his cheeks

'Re.. Reaper!' yelled out Frosh as he burst in tears and jumped at Reaper. Clinging onto him as he cried

Everyone stared gathering around Reaper

'That was some fight, we almost won it man!' exclaimed Sting

'Well done indeed!' added Rufus

'You're the man!' exclaimed Lector in excitement

'So.. this is what a family feels like.. heh you always had it in you.. McGrath!' thought Reaper, while he looked at everyone encircling him

Reaper then lifted Frosh and cracked a smile, as the other members celebrated his return

* * *

Cole stood at an open field, along with Master Mavis, Master Makarov, Erza, Wendy and Natsu

'It's time Cole!' said Master Mavis, as she stood near him

'I'm ready' replied Cole, soon after which he looked at Wendy, Natsu, Erza waving at him. Suddenly, a lightning bolt struck his arm.

'Gah! What was that!' he yelled out and then raised his arm in defence

'Leaving so soon?' said a man wearing a black robe

'No way!' exclaimed Cole

'Hey! What's the big idea!' yelled out Natsu, soon after which the man took off his robe, revealing himself to be Reaper

'Reaper.. you're alive..' thought Cole, as he flashed back to the moment he watched Reaper disappear

'Surprised to see me?' asked Reaper with a smile on his face

'If you want a fight bring it!' yelled out Natsu

'Wait!' exclaimed Cole, raising his arm, ordering Natsu to stand down. He then walked towards Reaper. The two looked at each other, right after which Cole extended his hand.

''Tch.. the reason I'm here is because you have my scythe idiot!' yelled out Reaper, soon after which Cole felt embarrased and quickly handed over his scythe

'I gotta wash this thing properly now' said Reaper while taking it

'Seriously?' asked Cole, raising his eyebrows

Reaper grinned and turned around. Cole just smiled and turned back

'Good luck with New Marais, McGrath' said Reaper, right after which he flew away with his fire bird strike

'You too' whispered Cole, walking towards Master Mavis

'Are you ready to leave?' asked Master Mavis

'Yeah..' replied Cole, soon after which a magic circle began glowing underneath the two

Cole looked at everyone waving to him. He noticed how Wendy was controlling herself not to break down in tears. Cole just smiled back as his body faded away.

'Damn it.. now I gotta deal with this feeling of missing someone!' yelled out Natsu

'You could say that again..' replied Erza, right after which the two turned their attention towards Wendy

Wendy, holding onto a phone, kept looking at a picture which Cole took with her, had tears rolling down her cheeks.

'That's his.. phone right?' asked Natsu

'He said I could keep it..' replied Wendy, soon after which she smiled and stared at the sky, after looking at their pic together

While travelling, Cole comes across a rift, where he turns around to see Master Mavis waving to him

Cole nods as he comes closer to the rift and waves back

'May our paths cross once again Cole!' she said with a smile, soon after which Cole closed his eyes and smiled back, entering into the rift

* * *

'Conduits, Wizards, Dragons man it's a crazy world out there Zeke, you never know what you're gonna find next!' exclaimed Cole while sitting on a sofa with his best friend Zeke

'I couldn't agree more brother, have met weird chicks before myself 'replied Zeke

'Tch, you still think I'm joking don't you?' asked Cole

'Hey, I never said you were, but that was a neat story, you'd make a great writer once you retire' replied Zeke while getting up

'Where are you going?' asked Cole

'Going for a walk, wanna join?' asked Zeke

'I'll skip' replied Cole.

As Zeke left, Cole yawned, soon after which he kept his hand on his pocket. He noticed something and took it out

'An SD Card? Oh of course!' he thought, soon after which he took out a new phone he bought and put it in

'Good thing I copied all of this, almost forgot about this..' Cole whispered, as the photos loaded one by one

Cole looked at a photo he took with Erza, he grinned, then swiped to see a photo he took with Wendy. He smiled and set it as his wallpaper. He then kept his phone in his pocket and looked around.

'Help!' cries of a young woman echo around the rooftops

'Another damsel in distress, better get going!' exclaimed Cole, getting up and sprinting to the edge

 _'I guess you can say life isn't fair, we all get pushed down by the weight of our expectations. We become victims of the choices we never have a say on, but to overcome those difficult times, to pull through every obstacle thrown down at you, is what defines you in the end. From the demon of empire city, to the patron saint of new Marais, and the conduit of fairy Tail, I can say my life has come a long way~'_

* * *

Hey everyone, well I can't really say much. It's been a hell of a ride, from the start of The Lost magic, to the end of this arc. I just want to say thank you, to each and everyone out there who took their time to read this. I couldn't have made it this far without your unconditional support. Life wasn't going perfect for me in between, but I didn't let that affect the story. I apologize to everyone for delaying this for more than a year, but now, I can say it's all over

It only gets more emotional, putting this series to a rest. This would mean me, as a writer, won't be coming up with anything after this. It was fun while it lasted, but as they all say, everything good or bad, has to come to an end. Once again, thank you, for your support

Honorable mentions to a lot of people who helped me throughout, this couldn't have been possible without their support. As a side note, here's some advice, know who your friends are, never feel you're alone. Because they end up being our light, during our darkest hours. As Cole himself had the light of Fairy Tail guiding him through.

The last thing I'd request, is to take your time and leave a review, whether you liked the series or not as a whole.

So, with the words of Master Mavis, I'll call the curtains on this series

 _'May our paths cross once again, Reader~'_

 **EvilCole**


End file.
